Cheap Eats 2011: Listings A-to-Z

Muhamed Mujcic-Mufkoâ€™s 4-4-2 is
Portlandâ€™s lone soccer bar, its walls adorned with the flags of favored
teams, from FC Bayern to the Timbersâ€™ green and yellow; the barâ€™s stock
clientele is mostly drawn from the ranks of the American Soccer Fan,
which is to say: foreigners, hippies and ex-expatriates. Some of us,
however, come in simply for the hospitality and the bar food (as well as
the draft beer served in true half-liter mugs). Bosnian lepinja
bread, made in-house, is a singular version of the Mediterranean pita:
half an inch thick and fluffy as a baguette, with a sweet outer
crispness that comes from being baked in olive oil. The ĹˇiĹˇ (rich, spicy sausage patties, pronounced â€śsheeshâ€ť) and cevapi (beef-lamb patties akin to mini-hamburgers) are served in an array of options ranging from $8 to $12; each comes with lepinja bread, sweet-bitter yogurt sauce and ajvar,
a spicy pepper-eggplant relish. My favorite, however, is the peka
sandwich ($8.75), which sports wafer-sliced meat so smoked and cured as
to be beefâ€™s own thundering answer to bacon. Dear Lord. MATTHEW KORFHAGE.

This Alberta pizzeria hand-throws pies
using what their menu calls a â€śsecret Sicilian recipe.â€ť Having never
been to Sicily, I can only take their word for it, but if the natives
there are all about thin, crispy crust with a beautifully darkened cornicione
(what we call â€ścrustâ€ť), Ferruzza has it nailed. The pizza margherita
($7 for a 12-inch pie) balances a sweet, fresh San Marzano tomato sauce
with just a smattering of mozzarella and fresh basil, resulting in a
simple, unfussy, satisfying slice for the pizza purist. Ferruzzaâ€™s
calzones ($8.50), in contrast, are heady, rich affairs, stuffed with
ricotta, mozzarella and a pair of ingredients of your choice. Right out
of the oven, they are messy, gooey and painfully hot, but oh so worth
the agony. BRIAN PANGANIBAN.

Angel Food and Fun would be yet another hit-or-miss
neighborhood convenience if it didnâ€™t do one thing so soul-stirringly
well that I hesitate to publicize it for fear there will not be any left
for me when I return. That thing is called cochinita pibil ($9.99),
and I want to marry it. Angelâ€™s take on the Yucatanâ€™s most famous dish
finds citrusy, sunburn-red broth swimming with slow-cooked cuts of
tender pork that fall apart at the touch of a spoon; by the time half of
the bowl is empty, you will be tucking into a gloriously unified mass
of steaming flesh and grease that would not look out of place burbling
up from the earth as a lava-slow current of perfect sustenance. You will
not be disappointedâ€”unless you hate life. CHRIS STAMM.

Itâ€™s a ballsy move, declaring your
biscuits and gravy the best in Portland right there on the menu. But
when the plate arrives, itâ€™s hard to argue against a pair of fluffy
sweet potato biscuits drowning in rosemary-sausage gravy and topped,
just for the hell of it, with thin slices of pork loin. At this small
cafe across the street from the Mount Scott Community Center, the brunch
selections are the standout. Its signature dish, as featured on Food
Networkâ€™s Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives, is the Sicilian hash
($10), made from Italian rolled beef and seasoned so richly with
peppers, onions and potatoes it made Guy Fieri show the country his
O-face. But donâ€™t sleep on the lunch items either, which include the
Belmont veggie burger ($7) and the Weezie ($6.50), described as â€śa BLT
on steroids.â€ť MATT SINGER.

Itâ€™s easy to walk past the plain-Jane exterior of this
cafe in favor of Southeast Division Streetâ€™s more eye-catching eateries.
Donâ€™t. Inside, youâ€™ll be rewarded with a deli case brimming with an
ever-changing lineup of goodies, all made from fresh, local, organic
ingredients. On one visit, it yielded pot pies, garlic kale, miso soup
and bread pudding; a week later, it held mac â€™nâ€™ cheese, arroz con pollo,
lasagna and balsamic cherry cheesecakes. Regular tenants include the
tasty seasonal frittatas ($6.50) and a rotating array of sandwiches and
panini ($7.50)â€”ours came with roasted mushrooms, thick slices of
super-soft Teleme cheese and lemon aioli inside a soft ciabatta roll,
and could easily have gone head-to-head with any of the more hyped
sandwich shops in town. Cakes, pastries and cookies are also made
in-house and the options are equally amorphousâ€”one day croissants, the
next browniesâ€”though thereâ€™s always something vegan and gluten-free. RUTH BROWN.

Ate-Oh-Ate

2454 E Burnside St., 445-6101, ateohate.com. 11 am-9 pm daily.

This Hawaiian fast-food joint is an homage to co-owner
Benjamin Dyerâ€™s childhood in Kona, and also something of a parody. The
name is a pun (Hawaiiâ€™s area code is 808), the website is intentionally
awful, the â€™50s exotica illustrations pinned under the glass tabletops
ridiculous, and there is no attempt to make the mounds of white rice and
sloppy side-salads that accompany every entree more glamorous than the
islandsâ€™ average. Foodies who balk at the mundane sides and presence of
Spam on the menu are missing the point; Dyer is not after Hawaiian fine
dining so much as well-made nostalgia. Plate lunches like the sweet,
crisp Korean-style chicken wings and chicken thighs simmered in shoyu
(each $8.95) are tasty, filling and completely unexciting, and this is
as it should be. Who needs fireworks when youâ€™ve got a volcano? BEN WATERHOUSE.

Every real neighborhood needs a pizza joint. And though
Portland is far from replicating New York Cityâ€™s
shop-on-every-street-corner scene, Atomic Pizza is a good hangout spot
for anyone in the Overlook Village â€™hood. Everything about Atomic Pizza
has a Portland vibe, from pies named things like â€śYellow Lineâ€ť and â€śHwy
99â€ť to the toppings, which range from veggie faves like the â€śAlbertaâ€ť (a
large pesto, mushroom, artichoke heart and sun-dried tomato pizza for
$20.40) to gut-busting meat assaults (the aptly named â€śPaul Bunyanâ€ť
stacks four kinds of meat on one slice). Though the shop does takeout
pies, itâ€™s best to enjoy a slice ($2.95 for cheese, $3.95 for the daily
special) and a pint at the cozy bar before heading out for the night. MICHAEL MANNHEIMER.

Tucked in a sunny, off-street industrial building on
Northeast Glisan Street, Bakery Bar can be hard to find. Once youâ€™ve
visited, though, itâ€™s similarly hard to quit. Though the name implies
cakes, pies and breadsâ€”of which there are plenty, including some wicked
banana bread for $2.75 a sliceâ€”Bakery Barâ€™s breakfast menu is the main
attraction. The migas ($9, $10.50 with housemade chorizo), a
Southwestern scramble of eggs, peppers and tortilla chips, is a welcome
blast of Texas on a wet Portland winter. The $9 biscuits and gravy, like
any dish involving the Barâ€™s amazing biscuits, is rich and distinctive.
And for the lighter wallets/appetites, an elaborate selection of fried
egg sandwiches (on equally amazing housemade English muffins) run from
$4.50 to $6. Oh, and the â€śBarâ€ť in this cozy jointâ€™s name is no joke:
Mimosas (served in a pint glass for $6.50) and other such early-riser
cocktails help make it one of Portlandâ€™s premier hangover brunch spots. CASEY JARMAN.

Unlike the all-you-can eat buffet and
great simmering bowls of downtownâ€™s Taiwanese-style Hot Pot City (see
page 19), Beijing Hot Pot is a communal affair: A bowl of broth is
placed in the center of the table over a gas burner, and diners order
various bits of raw meat, fish and vegetables to cook in it. Itâ€™s a
slow, luxurious way to eat, and the broth grows richer with each
addition. Order the spicy broth, which isnâ€™t all that spicy, and the
combination for two (it comes with beef, pork, a pile of veggies,
chicken meatballs and handmade noodles, all for $24.95). If youâ€™re
feeling flush, add on the shrimp balls ($6.95), which are made to order
and taste astonishingly fresh, with a nice chewy-then-crunchy texture.
Cook the noodles last, and slurp them down with the remaining broth.
Then fall asleep. BEN WATERHOUSE.

Slices ($3.50) so big you must fold them over to eat â€™em?
Check. So piping hot they blister the roof of your mouth? Check. OK, we
admit our standards for a pizzeria arenâ€™t too exacting. But Bella Faccia
rates a revisit for a couple of reasons beyond easily meeting those two
simple criteria: One, it offers a wide selection of pizza including
vegan options. Two, we like the total-pigout option of ordering a dozen
baked garlic knots ($5) and for dessert, an Aunt Rettâ€™s Congo bar
($1.75), a sweet concoction of graham cracker, chocolate and powdered
sugar sure to help with that mouth blister. HENRY STERN.

Best Taste brands itself as â€śChinese BBQ,â€ť and the owners
arenâ€™t kidding; this meat bears no resemblance to its American cousin.
Right by the doorway fire-reddened ducks are strung up at the neck,
while the rear quarters of pigs hang from wire looped into their
unmentionables. Neither the butchering nor the spicing is tempered for
American palates, which means you get everything from crispy skin to fat
to bone in your literal cross-section of duck or pig ($7.50 and $8.45,
respectively, with rice and bok choy garnish). The restaurantâ€™s wide
array of won ton noodle soup includes the wonderful acquired taste of
pickled green soup with pork ($7), which over the course of its
voluminous bowl went, for this palate, from over-tart to fantastically sui generis.
Amid the 100-plus menu options, though, what always keeps this reviewer
returning is the killer all-day dim sum, including shumai dumplings
($2.50 for 4), black-bean spareribs ($2.50) and sweet egg-glazed buns
($2). Plus, the fact I can hear the familyâ€™s TV from their upstairs
living space lets me know theyâ€™ve really committed to the place. MATTHEW KORFHAGE.

Ethiopian dining is rarely an elegant affair, and the
white tablecloths, real napkins and minimalist decor of Bete-Lukas donâ€™t
exactly scream, â€śPull up a pew and start scarfing lentils with your
hands!â€ť But this South Tabor eatery is all about bringing a rare touch
of refinement and subtlety to Horn of Africa cuisine: the
plainest-sounding dish, kategnaâ€”described simply as â€śwarm injera
with berbere and seasoned butterâ€ťâ€”turns out to be a standout, with
moist, fresh rolls of the spongy, slightly sour northeast African bread
layered with a complex blend of spices. Instead of encouraging you to
stuff yourself like thereâ€™s a famine on, servings are generous without
being excessive. The menu offers a large range of lamb, beef, chicken
and fish dishes, but its simpler, cheaper, heartier vegetarian fare is
where Bete-Lukas really shines. From the fiery red-lentil misir wot to the tangy curried carrot and cabbage tikel gomen,
each is distinctly delicious, and offers a taste of fine dining without
the price tag or pretension. At $7 to $8 with injera and salad, every
vegetable dish is an excellent value, but the $11 combo plate allows you
to sample almost all of them. RUTH BROWN.

Vegans and carnivores alike, hie to this bright
hole-in-the-wall deli-bakery combo with two locations hidden amid
industrial buildings both north and south of East Burnside. Prepare to
taste a foreign language of tapenade, Tofutti and frittata. Vegan
biscuits and gravy ($4.50), polenta bake ($4.25) and macaroni salad
($3.50) beckon from behind the deli case. Meat-eaters will love the
Suffolk sandwich, composed of turkey, cheddar, lemon-rosemary mayo and
cucumber-pickle chutney. Vegetarians might try the Rough Fell sandwich
with provolone, olive tapenade, hummus, carrot and roasted red pepper
(both $6.50 whole, $4 half). And donâ€™t forget about the vast array of
baked vegan pastries, like the maple and applesauce muffins ($2), and
desserts, like the peanut butter chocolate-chip bar ($1.75). Everything
on the menu can be â€śveganized,â€ť and might (gasp!) be tastier for it. For
those on the west side, check out Black Sheep Bakeryâ€™s stand at the PSU
farmers market on Saturdays. STACY BROWNHILL.

Since crossing the river from its original Pearl location,
this local vegan favorite has indeed blossomed: The restaurant now
offers lunch, dinner and Sunday brunch and has just added a full-service
bar and lounge. The cocktails ($8) all tend a little to the sweet side,
but are creative and well prepared. Itâ€™s already the best bar in the
area by default. To accompany them is the requisite happy hour (3-6 pm),
offering a range of tacos ($3 each or four for $10), personal pizzas
($6) and discounted drinks. The tacos are about as Mexican as Cool Ranch
Doritos, but very tasty and deceptively filling. The Thai is a
standout, full of spicy soy curls and packing more heat than many actual
taqueria tacos in this town. Pizzas are heartier, but less exciting.
The marinara came on hard naan bread with a sauce that tasted like
canned tomato paste. One thing that hasnâ€™t changed: The big swirls of
vegan soft serve ($5) are still the best thing on the menu. RUTH BROWN.

Ask people to envision a soda fountain in their heads and
chances are most will imagine some kind of â€™50s-themed Disneyland
attraction, with checkered linoleum floors and waitresses delivering
orders on roller skates and all that other Johnny Rocketâ€™s crap.
Thankfully, downtown lunch spot Blueplate forgoes the typical cheesy
retro-diner decor (there isnâ€™t enough room inside to pull it off,
anyway), allowing the nostalgia to originate in the taste buds. Although
it obviously prides itself on the daily specials that are its
namesakeâ€”the menu cycles through a different classic American entree
($10) and sandwich ($8) each dayâ€”the perennial dishes are no slouches
themselves, particularly the sliders ($7). Not feeling vintage enough?
Cap the meal with an ice cream float ($3.50-$4) made from one of the
intriguingly flavored house sodas. Still not taken back far enough?
Well, what the hell do you want? The Fonz pounding on a jukebox? MATT SINGER.

The huge floor-to-ceiling chalkboard at Breken Kitchen
serves as menu for this breakfast, lunch and happy-hour cafe in
Slabtown. Breakfast is simple and good and usually frequented with
laptoppers eating Kettleman bagels ($3 with cream cheese) and sipping on
Umbria coffee ($1.50-$2.50 cup); lunch frenetic with a long line for
counter-service soup/salad/sandwich; and happy hour sleepy. The food is
kickass cafe fare with three soups du jour ($3-$5) and really good daily
specials like beef pancetta stew over mashers and Italian sausage
lasagna. The turkey, avocado and bacon sandwich on como ($8.95) with a
Singing Pig greens salad is great. Itâ€™s even better if you sub a cup of
the Yukon gold shiitake soup (add $1.50). Avoid Breken in the late
afternoon unless you crave a just-out-of-school romper roomâ€”Childpeace
Montessori is across the street. LIZ CRAIN.

Itâ€™s all about excellent, fresh tofu,
whether itâ€™s fried and coated in lemongrass ($3), served hot â€™nâ€™ plain
with soy sauce (60 cents for 8 ounces) or mixed with onion and wrapped
around a funky pork ball. Saigon natives Thuha and Minh Bui started
their family-recipe tofu biz in the garage of their Portland home nearly
a decade ago. These days the couple processes up to 200 pounds of
soybeans a day. Still, the two take time out to proselytize about their
favorite pressed bean curd. Minh says he still eats two trays of firm
tofu for breakfast every morning. KELLY CLARKE.

Bun Bo Hue

7002 SE 82nd Ave., 771-1141. 9 am-10 pm daily.

Bun Bo Hue is Portlandâ€™s signature spot for the restaurantâ€™s eponymous meat-noodle soup. (Bun, by the way, refers to the vermicelli-style noodles; bo to the meat; Hue
to the city in Vietnam; Vietnamese dish names billow out like nouns in
German.) So the name of the restaurant should also be what you order
here. There are only seven bun bo hue options ($7-$8.50), though
all are uncommonly well prepared, with their various meats or egg rolls.
The broth here is unfilmy with oil, the meat trimmed of fat, the
sprouts and cilantro fresh and generous. The decor is both seedily
unfinished and teeming with kitschy-domestic interest; knickknacks swarm
the shelves and walls, including eight colorful calendars, a beaten-on
boom box and a small fountain in which a frog eternally chases a
bobbling fly. Tea comes free, but the tart house-squeezed lemonade ($3)
is nonetheless highly recommended. MATTHEW KORFHAGE.

The pork belly Cubano ($8) at Bunk
Sandwiches is stupid good, in that you tend to do stupid things when in
possession of one, like attempting to eat it while driving a stick shift
on the freeway. Play it safe and enjoy the tangy, fatty torpedo of
toasty pig flesh while at a complete stop. Or better still, eat it while
sitting in Bunk and wondering if you could fit one in your gullet along
with bacon, egg and cheese on a roll ($5) without having to mainline
Lipitor. If Bunkâ€™s owners are going to go out of their way to serve
their breakfast sandwiches all day, it would be the height of rudeness
to not avail yourself of their hospitality. BRIAN PANGANIBAN.

Byways is best enjoyed when your head is pounding and you
need some food to devour as you try to remember what all happened last
night. The travel-themed decor and ample bar seating is classic diner
grunge. The â€śsunrise specialâ€ť ($7.95) consists of eggs, bacon and
pancakes, and will result in a textbook post-brunch coma. As greasy and
debilitating as breakfast can be, the sandwiches ($5.65-$9.50) arenâ€™t
anything to write home about. Byways is a comfortable dive in the midst
of the posh Pearl District. RACHAEL DEWITT.

We all know real artists subsist on
steady diets of tobacco and methamphetamines, and Canvas Art Bar &
Bistro serves neither, so one does wonder at the quality of beer-fueled
work being produced by the doodling diners at this high-concept
establishment. The jointâ€™s gist: Make art while you chow down. Charcoal,
graphite and sketch paper is free, but if youâ€™re more Vermeer than
Cocteau, canvases and paints are available for a reasonable price. Donâ€™t
dismiss Canvas if drunken self-portraiture isnâ€™t your thing, because
the food is well worth the trip into Northwestâ€™s boondocks. The New
Jackson Pollock ($6) flips the grilled cheese script with Brie and
blackberry preservesâ€”a grilled cheese without fruit will just never
satisfy againâ€”while the Southwest bento ($7), which is what a bento
would look and taste like if Laughing Planet tried and failed to squeeze
one into a burrito, features a fresh mix of black beans, corn and
avocado. While such fare might not make for good artâ€”weâ€™re pretty sure
it does not contain opiumâ€”it makes for some damn fine eating. CHRIS STAMM.

If thereâ€™s a little more focus on asparagus than youâ€™d
expect from a tamale joint, thereâ€™s a good reason: Milwaukieâ€™s Casa de
Tamales is a side project for the Canby Asparagus Farm, which means a
lot of emphasis on sourcing, from the asparagus to the roasted Oregon
plums and raisins in the mammoth, fantastic, oh-so-moist nacatamal
(Nicaraguan tamale, $9). In specials rotation, the Casa boasts 40
tamale varieties ($6.50 for the basics); last time I was in, halibut was
on the menu. An equal variety adorns the jam packed walls, from Alvin
Ailey and Elvis posters to marlin corpses and literal bull horns, in an
assortment so idiosyncratic it couldnâ€™t be anything but personal. Also,
if youâ€™re lucky, the ownerâ€™s father, Charles, will sit down and tell you
about his travelsâ€”he seems to like life more than most, and has been to
a lot of places. MATTHEW KORFHAGE.

With its slate-blue walls and teak wood carvings, Chiang
Mai just looks like a gussied-up version of your neighborhood Thai
takeout joint. But the extensive menu hides far more noodle and stir-fry
options, as well as unexpected dishes from the northern Thai town its
owners once called home. Bypass your usual order of green curry ($7) for
a rich and aromatic pork stew with pineapple and peanuts served with
sticky rice called gang hung lay ($8.50). Youâ€™ll find eats often only sold at Red Onion or Mee Sen here, like spicy ground pork and tomato nam prik oong and funky Chiang Mai sausage, plus a full roster of standbys like pad kee mao ($7-$10) and puckery tom kha soup ($5-$8.50). Do not leave without devouring an order of tao hoo tod ($7), addictive wedges of deep-fried tofu rolled in roasted coconut and served with sweet peanut sauce. KELLY CLARKE.

Once a much-vaunted local rib cart off Dekum,
Christopherâ€™s is now a local rib shack: shantied on the outside, bare
bones and meaty-boned on the inside. The menu has expanded to include
catfish and snapper baskets ($12.95), a hot-link sandwich featuring â€ś6
oz. of hot sausageâ€ť ($6.50), dessert cakes in hilariously huge portions
and the restaurantâ€™s best selling item, a classic-style chipped-beef
Philly cheesesteak with secret sauce ($6.50). Still, the heart/soul
stays with the ribs ($9.95 for a three-bone), which are sweet-sauced,
meaty and tender. Among the sides, the crisp, unstringy
fried okra is probably the standout; itâ€™s hard to do this well, and
Christopherâ€™s does. And dammit, be nice when youâ€™re there. In case you
didnâ€™t know the score, Christopherâ€™s has it plastered across the walls:
â€śThis is a family environment. Please watch your language. Thank you.â€ť MATTHEW KORFHAGE.

Dessert people just love to draw a line in the cocoa
between â€śadultâ€ť and â€śkidsâ€ť sweets, usually based on bitterness and
complexity. But one spoonful of a two-scoop sundae ($5), piled high with
Oregon hazelnuts, housemade fudge and drippy amarena cherries at Eva
Bernhardâ€™s Pearl District ice cream parlor totally nukes all age
barriers. Only aliens and the lactose intolerant could deny the appeal
of chocolate laced with cinnamon and cayenne pepper (Spicy Xocolatl
Crunch) or her basic but luscious cookies and cream (itâ€™s even better if
theyâ€™re serving the version laced with gingersnaps). Unusual flavors
like the pistachio-and-cardamom-flavored Indian kulfi or spicy Thai
chile draw in ice cream skeptics, but a sugar cone full of mint chip or
buttermilk Marionberry swirl will make you feel like one of the kids
playing across the street in Jamison Square. Psst: Pints of ice cream
are only $4 every day from 4 to 6 pm. KELLY CLARKE.

Tucked into the northeastern corner of a
squat, windowless cinderblock building that screams of dark
historyâ€”think leaflet-loving Christian cults or cut-rate laser
tagâ€”Daloâ€™s doesnâ€™t offer the eye much more than a few Ethiopian tourist
posters (â€ś13 Months of Sunshine,â€ť taunts one of them) to brighten the
mood, but hereâ€™s why you wonâ€™t care: $10 for an all-you-can-eat buffet.
On a recent evening, every diner in the place seemed to be on a first
name basis with the proprietorâ€”hugs and pinched baby cheeks were
involvedâ€”and every one of those loyal customers eventually queued up at
that buffet table. Regulars tend to know the score, so follow them to
the steaming serving trays filled with awaze sigga tibbs (beef in chile sauce), doro tibbs (curry chicken), alicha misir wot
(split pea stew) and other simple staples with difficult names. Itâ€™s
all so good youâ€™ll forget youâ€™re in a building that probably once housed
medical waste. CHRIS STAMM.

Man, you gotta feel bad for Portlandâ€™s Thai restaurants. I
mean, with what seems like two for every Rose City resident, they must
be competing in an absolutely cutthroat market. But, just like Adam
Smith said it would, that brutal competition has benefited us consumers
with some really good noodle-and-curry spots. Dangâ€™s, though lacking a
â€śThaiâ€ť pun in its name, is one of them. This slightly, but not stuffily,
upscale place in Lake O does right by Thai classics: its pad see ew ($10) could be a tad saucier, but the green curry ($10) is perfect. Take the road less traveled with the kao soi ($10), a generous lake of spicy curry, veggies and egg noodles with an island of crispy noodles floating atop it. JONATHAN FROCHTZWAJG.

Detour Cafe

3035 SE Division St., 234-7499, detourcafe.com, 8 am-4 pm daily.

Itâ€™s all about the breakfast sandwich at this hideaway
brunch spot. These babies are made with scrambled eggs baked into a soft
and fluffy centerpiece, and served on buttery slices of Detourâ€™s
housemade focaccia. Last year, Rachael Ray named The Don ($8.50-$9)â€”a
hefty mouthful stuffed with mushroom, onion, feta cheese, tomato,
avocado and basil, topped with Italian sausage, salmon or veggie
sausageâ€”one of the best breakfast sandwiches in the country. But with
all due respect for the sophisticated palate of Ms. Entreetizer, we
prefer the All Fired Up ($6.50), which comes slathered in
jalapeĂ±o-artichoke cream cheese topped with mushroom and peppers.
Possibly not â€śthe best in the country,â€ť but oh my gravy is it a
delicious start to the day. The lunchier side of the menu has five
veggie burgers, all featuring a dense, nutty patty and a range of other
comestiblesâ€”one of which is, paradoxically, baconâ€”crammed between more
of that tasty focaccia. Yum-o. RUTH BROWN.

If you order tabletop barbecue at D.J.K., youâ€™ll get
scissors, tongs and platters of thinly sliced rosy meat and seafood
delivered and retrieved by cart-pushing servers. D.J.K.â€™s tabletop
barbecue comes as combo platters for two or more. The two-person combo
($39.95) gets you slices of raw beef brisket, flank steak and pork loin
to sizzle yourself, along with soup, rice and steamed egg. Thereâ€™s also
shabu-shabu ($21.95-$26.95 per person, two-person minimum), which is
Koreaâ€™s version of Chinese hot pot. Basically itâ€™s tabletop
boil-in-broth meat, seafood, vegetables and noodles. If youâ€™d rather
leave the cooking to the kitchen, order Korean classics such as kimchi chijae ($8.95), grilled mackerel ($12.95) or dolsot bibimbap ($10.95). Thereâ€™s bottled beer, wine, sake and soju (Korean for shochu). LIZ CRAIN.

The DĂ¶ner folk have been slinging their shaved meat
sandwiches since 2008 and show no indications of slowing downâ€”good news
for those relying on a steady supply of shawarmaâ€™s European cousin.
Whether you enjoy the heaping mound of spit-roasted turkey on bread
($6.99), in a wrap ($6.99) or doubled up on a plate ($7.99), the salty
slices with just the right amount of char balanced by crisp veggies and a
unifying yogurt sauce are going to improve your attitude. Get fries if
you must, but all your attention will be on the dĂ¶ner, which is how it
should be. BRIAN PANGANIBAN.

Even on a polished avenue like Northwest 23rd, appearances
can be deceiving: Dorioâ€™s decor, an anonymous blend of suburban cafe
and cocktail bar, suggests a menu of wheatgrass wraps, but Dorio is
actually one of the cityâ€™s best Greek lunch spots, and among the very
few that stuffs its gyros with identifiable meats. All come with a good
Greek side salad or garlic fries. The lamb ($10) is tender, spiked with
fresh thyme and garlic, the tzatziki sauce good and sour. The chicken
($8.50) is well marinated, tender and salty. Both meats are available as
â€śGreek bentoâ€ť over rice for $6.50 and $5.50, respectively. Dinner is
very nearly as cheap, and just as satisfying. BEN WATERHOUSE.

Dove Vivi

2727 NE Glisan St., 239-4444, dovevivipizza.com, 4-10 pm daily.

Since firing up its ovens in 2007, Dove Vivi has drawn
crowds with crispy cornmeal pizza crust and weird toppings like corn and
butternut squash. Pies are offered at $20 for a whole and $10 for a
half, but that ruins half the fun of what makes Dove Vivi a
hitâ€”experimentation. With slices made to order (at $3.75 each) from an
everyday menu, itâ€™s easy to please picky palates with the Pepperoni
Classico or Quatro Formaggio, while the corn-covered slices and spicy
housemade sausage add pizzazz. A rotating menu of daily specials is a
bit friskier, boasting such anomalies as ham and pear, chorizo, golden
chanterelle and a colorful cast of pies both strange and traditional.
Itâ€™s a virtual pizza lab offering something for every tasteâ€¦. Just be
sure to grab a glass of wine, as even slices take 20 minutes to cook,
and get ready to play willing guinea pig to the mad experiments. AP KRYZA.

Duâ€™s might be the ultimate cheap eat, at least for
non-veggies. The formula is simple: huge portions of grilled meat boxed
up with alarming speed for scant money. It literally takes longer to
wait for the crosswalk light on Sandy Boulevard to change than it does
for your order to be chopped, wrapped and ready. The speed is merciful;
if the wait were longer, the tantalizing smell of grilling beef, chicken
and pork might just overwhelm you. Order the standard chicken teriyaki
($6.90) and youâ€™ll get a giant pile of juicy bird on a bed of rice, with
a hefty salad and Duâ€™s awesome poppyseed dressing. You can also get
combos of chicken and pork ($7.60), chicken and beef or pork and beef
(both $7.90). The side of kimchi ($2.50) doesnâ€™t add much, and the tofu
bowl ($6) is an untempting concession to the veg crowd. Trust us, you
want the meat. BECKY OHLSEN.

A tasty shot of North and South Indian
spice in the unassuming row of restaurants that also includes Mio Sushi
and No Fish! Go Fish!, Dwaraka Indian Cuisineâ€™s sparse decor and
standard-issue Indian lunch buffet belie an extremely tasty, affordable
treasure for the tandoori set. Vegetarian and carnivorous options
abound, including spicy vindaloos, curries, masalas and saag. Lamb
vindaloo ($11.95 a la carte, $14.95 thali-style with curry, dal,
sambar, rice, chewy naan, raita and dessert) offers ample spice without
esophageal incineration, while appetizers double as a small meal unto
themselves, including crispy vegetable or meat samosas ($4.50-$5.50),
deep-fried to perfection and loaded with peas, and dosas, crĂŞpelike
flour rolls stuffed with curry, lentils and a variety of sauces
($4.50-$5). Everything from the cheeses to the naan is housemade, making
the sparse, family-owned restaurant a prime spot without breaking the
bank. AP KRYZA.

At first glance just a well-heeled neighborhood grocery
deep within one of the cityâ€™s most exclusive residential areas, where
median home prices top half a million, Eastmoreland Market has indeed
long been viewed as a neighborhood asset. But the main attraction for
outsiders is the Kitchen, with its lunchtime offerings of mammoth
sandwiches, salads and other satisfying deli items. The meatball hero
($8) makes a prince of this blue-collar classic, with the mozzarella,
meatballs and most other components housemade. The meaty muffuletta ($8)
has its own following. The hoagie ($8.50), with pan-fried chicken,
dressed greens, sun-dried tomatoes and goat cheese, is a marvelous
combination of tangy and savory flavors. Worth the trip in themselves
are the arancine ($1), the delicate and mischievous-feeling Sicilian
fried risotto balls, which are among the best in town. If this place is
the closest most of us will ever come to living in Eastmoreland, then so
be it. CRAIG BEEBE.

Eâ€™Njoni Cafe exudes warmth. The walls are painted in tones
of terra cotta and butternut squash, and the flavors that infuse the
dishes are equally warm, all curry and ginger and fiery berbere (a
chile-based spice mixture ubiquitous in East African cuisine). Start
with house favorite fuul ($7), a bowl of slow-cooked fava beans
served with freshly baked bread. The sweetness of the tomatoes and the
tartness of the feta balance the heat of the chile peppers. Order up a
five-veggie combo plate ($12)â€”try the timtimo (cardamom-spiced lentils in berbere sauce), or the bamiazigni (garlicky
okra and chickpeas)â€”and a few meat entrees ($11-$14). All dishes come
served on a bicycle wheel-sized bed of spongy injera. Coffee
connoisseurs wonâ€™t want to miss the elaborate coffee ceremony, a
30-minute process that takes you through the full brewing process. And
for imbibers, thereâ€™s Ethiopian wine and beer on offer: Try the tej, a slightly viscous honey wine reminiscent of mead. REBECCA JACOBSON.

Escape From New York Pizza

622 NW 23rd Ave., 227-5423, efnypizza.net. 11:30 am-11 pm daily.

How paradoxical, that munching fresh, hot slices should be
a form of nostalgia, but Escape From New York serves as a kind of
collective Proustian madeleine for the shoppers of
No-Longer-Trendy-Third. Since 1983, Phil Geffner has been pulling Big
Apple pies out of the oven, with the piquantly seasoned tomato sauce as
thick as the Statues of Liberty peppering the storefront. Two pepperoni
slices ($3.25 each) are a perfect 12-minute lunch, and a used copy of
the Times always seems to be lying near the counter. A
neighborhood cornerstone that has lost little of its attitude, Escape
proudly carries out Geffnerâ€™s principled fight against delivery, credit
cards, wasted napkins and ranch dressing. AARON MESH.

Being the deep-frying free spirits that
they are, youâ€™d think that people behind this hot wing bastion would be
more egalitarian in their approach to developing new products. Why not
just have an open to the public vat of 350 degree oil to throw in
whatever tickles your fancy. Then again, they have a far better sense of
what would benefit from an oil-delivered Mailliard reaction than most.
(Deep-fried Nutter Butters? Frigginâ€™ brilliant!). Case in point: The
wings, obviously. Choose from nearly a dozen different sauces for every
six wings ($5.95), choose your sides, get your fingers dirty and wonder
at the restorative power of hot oil. For you more dainty eaters, try a
chicken-tender-based sandwich, like the Emma ($8.95), a
too-tall-for-your-mouth construction that also includes bacon, lettuce,
tomato, blue cheese and a guarantee you wonâ€™t be kissing anyone soon
after eating it. BRIAN PANGANIBAN.

Foster Burger

5339 SE Foster Road, 775-2077, fosterburger.com. 11 am-10 pm daily.

The meaty offspring of Andy Ricker (Pok Pok, Ping), Daniel
Mondok (Sel Gris) and Kurt Huffman (developer of Whiskey Soda Lounge,
Ping, GrĂĽner and St. Jack) isnâ€™t a â€śconcept restaurantâ€ť
or a cheeky riff on the American diner. Itâ€™s just a straight-up burger
jointâ€”thank Godâ€”with a â€™90s Portland theme that shows up everywhere from
the walls papered with Satyricon and La Luna posters to the Weezer and
Pixies tunes on the stereo. All their messy-wonderful eats ($8-$11 or
so) start with a foundation of soft housemade brioche buns, excellent
housemade pickles ($2.50-$5, stock up with a jar from the fridge near
the bar) and a side of crisp, skin-on fries. From there, get a bit spicy
with the Burner burger ($10), packed with mellow roasted jalapeĂ±os,
crunchy little onion straws and both American and cheddar cheese all
drizzled with sriracha, or go Kiwi with pickled beets and a fried egg
($11). There are microbrews and booze on hand, but man, does Foster
Burger make a great chocolate milkshake. If I lived in the neighborhood,
my butt would never leave its wooden booths. KELLY CLARKE.

If youâ€™ve lived in Portland long, you
probably know about Fullerâ€™s as an old-school holdout, a well-loved
relic from before the Pearl District had a fancy name. Itâ€™s a classic
lunch counter-style diner, with big windows, unfussy service and a
serpentine row of seats facing the kitchen. Breakfast gets crowded, but
the line moves quickly. Try the â€śfamousâ€ť omelette ($9.25), with onions,
tomato, ham, cheese and mushroomsâ€”itâ€™s gooey and perfectly balanced. The
hotcake sandwich ($7.75) is another reliable favorite. Hash browns are a
little inconsistent; when theyâ€™re good, theyâ€™re very, very good, but
when theyâ€™re bad, theyâ€™re blackened. And one could argue that the prices
are a smidge high for what youâ€™re getting. Still, the use of real
ingredients (no plastic cheese, no canned mushrooms, no tinny orange
juice) and the unbeatable atmosphere outweigh any such quibbles. BECKY OHLSEN.

For the past seven years, Frank Fong has
been the Portland metro areaâ€™s king of noodlesâ€”chubby, springy, chewy
wonders he creates from wheat flour, eggs, water and one pair of hands.
He pulled his tasty wares at Beavertonâ€™s Du Kuh Bee until 2010, when he
parted ways with DKBâ€™s co-owner and opened Frankâ€™s in a converted house
on Northeast Broadway. The locale may have changed, but the noodles have
not. The fresh noodles are quick-boiled and then tossed into a hot wok
with a variety of proteinsâ€”thick bits of pork belly or toothsome squid
are my favoritesâ€”along with crisp bell peppers, cabbage, onions and a
smoky Korean chile sauce ($7.95-$12.95 at dinner). Minutes later,
theyâ€™re on your plate; seconds later, in your gullet. Portions are big
enough to share, especially since orders come with crunchy pickled
daikon, kimchi and soup. Go ahead and spring for a plate of housemade
steamed dumplings ($4.25), too. Packed with juicy, sesame-perfumed
ground pork and tons of chives, theyâ€™re so tender they make similar
dishes around town taste like gummy hockey pucks. KELLY CLARKE.

It really says something when you order a
two-piece â€śsnack boxâ€ť ($6.95 for legs or thighs, add $1 for a breast)
and receive a 2-pound plate loaded with a fried breast the size of a
Pomeranian, three potatoesâ€™ worth of breaded jojos and nary a speck of
color aside from brown. Ah, but thatâ€™s the beauty of Cider Mill-Fryer
Tuck Chicken, a cavernous Multnomah Village oasis that looks like a
small-town Midwestern hunting lodge and declares all-out war on your
left ventricle. Also tasty is the Pull This ($7.95), a pulled-chicken
slop stuffed into a hoagie full of coleslaw and sweet barbecue sauce.
But thatâ€™s a little too much color at a place where the most delicious
items are the color of charred mahogany. Fryer Tuck offers fried chicken
that gives the cityâ€™s best, Reel â€™M Inn, a run for its moneyâ€”and for
chicken scratch. AP KRYZA.

Gandhiâ€™s

827 SW 2nd Ave., 219-2287. 10 am-3:30 pm Monday-Friday.

What Gandhiâ€™s lacks in ambience
(wood-paneled walls, plastic plants) it makes up for in portion size.
The East Indian lunchtime spot, housed in the shell of a former Burger
King, dishes up tummy-busting servings of piquant chicken vindaloo,
curried potatoes and lip-burning stewed tomatoes, all heaped over a
veritable mountain range of rice. Donâ€™t let the long line deter
youâ€”counter service is zippy and friendly, and no dish will set you back
more than $8. Try the combination plate ($7.25), which gets you two
chicken dishes and two veggies. The resulting muddle might resemble
earth-toned sludge (ask for cilantro or tangy mint chutney to add some
green to the mix), but it tastes way better. REBECCA JACOBSON.

Genies Cafe

1101 SE Division St., 445-9777, geniesdivision.com, 8 am-3 pm daily.

Every Sunday, a line of bleary-eyed young people snakes
along Southeast Division Street. Theyâ€™re tired, cold, hungover or
possibly still drunk, and yet they wait, patiently, for a table at
Genies. For therein lies the answer to all of their problems: a tall,
stiff, face-burning Bloody Mary ($6.75), stuffed with a farmers market
of fresh vegetables and kicked up with house-infused vodkas like
habanero, horseradish, basil and bacon. For those who can stomach them,
solids are equally restorative. This is Portland Brunch 101â€”big plates
of scrambles, omelettes and hashes made with local ingredients in myriad
vegetarian and meaty variationsâ€”and almost everything rates a solid B+.
Benedicts ($9-$9.25) come with large free-range eggs and a textbook
hollandaise. Hefty biscuits are flecked with rosemary
and topped with a comforting, creamy gravy ($8.25). And the French toast
($7.75) is made with slices of house-baked brioche so big and soft,
youâ€™ll want to curl up on top of it and sleep off the rest of your
Saturday night. RUTH BROWN.

Geraldiâ€™s Italian Eating Place

518 SW 4th Ave., 224-1865. 9:30 am-3 pm Monday-Friday.

Step through Geraldiâ€™s tiny door and itâ€™s as though youâ€™ve
traveled 3,000 miles east. Youâ€™ll be greeted in a thick Boston accent;
the glorious scent of fresh meatballs and marinara sauce wafts through
the air; the faded red gingham is exactly what you expect. Hot
sandwiches are what Geraldiâ€™s is known for, and a full 9-inch sub is
truly a sight to beholdâ€”itâ€™s enough for three meals. Go classic with the
N.Y. meatball hero ($8.95), a fluffy Italian loaf stuffed with
meatballs and dripping mozzarella. The recipe for the Chicago beef hero
($8.75) was reportedly passed on to Geraldiâ€™s by a Chicagoan customer;
the updated version, Geraldiâ€™s Torpedo ($8.95), adds pepperoni to the
Italian beef, bell peppers and onions. The lasagna ($7.95, $6.95) comes
with or without meatballs, one of the few vegetarian options. If you
arenâ€™t already hiking it to Massachusetts, youâ€™ll at least be back
tomorrow. CAITLIN MCCARTHY.

Non parlo Italiano, but according to the menu of this new St. Johns pizzeria, girasole
means â€śsunflower.â€ť The name was chosen in part as a nod to the cafeâ€™s
pastoral roots: Girasole has operated as a stand on a Sauvie Island farm
since last spring, and only opened as a brick-and-mortar restaurant in
January. The pizza-making operationâ€™s move from farm stand to storefront
just goes to show you can take the pizzeria out of the country, but you
canâ€™t take the country out of the pizzeria. Even after being
transplanted, Girasole has retained its earthiness. The vegetables are
fresh, the service is friendly, and much of the decor, like the old
doors that serve as tables, has been resourcefully repurposed. The
pizzeria serves Italian-style, thin-crust pies baked, per tradition, in a
wood-fired oven. The Queen Margherita ($7 small, $14 large) is decent,
and the bacon, blue cheese and caramelized onion Mimi ($8 small, $15
large) is good, but if you only try one pie, make it the Thai ($9 small,
$16 large); itâ€™s nice and spicy, and the thick peanut sauce tastes as
natural as a bucolic day back on the farm. JONATHAN FROCHTZWAJG.

Serving big, cheesy, garlicky pies without an ounce of
pretension, this bare-bones pizza chamber only proofs enough dough for
30 pizzas a night. They donâ€™t always run out, but itâ€™s not worth
arriving late and missing out on the chance of wrapping your lips around
a chewy-crusted slice topped with peppery arugula, sweet onions and
sausage or groaning with Canadian bacon and pepperoni ($19-$28 a pie).
No meal is complete without a local microbrew from the short list above
the oven (Amnesia, Hopworks, etc. for $4 a pint) and a Caesar salad
($7.95), its drippy leaves groaning with Parmesan, so generous it will
feed four and leave you with garlic breath for hours. KELLY CLARKE.

Luckily, the NFL has yet to serve notice to this noodle
shop that their won ton-, noodle, roast-, barbecue pork- and duck-laden
â€śSuper Bowlâ€ť ($9) is in violation of its trademark and force them to
change the name to the Big Game Bowl. Regardless of what they call it,
it remains a ridiculously good deal. The won tons are plump, serious
affairs, redolent with sesame and five-spice, and the roast pork has
bits of crackling skin attached. Ignoring the rest of the menu here is
an easy trap to fall into, which is a shame. The shrimp fried rice ($7)
is exactly the sort of hot, salty starch bomb that makes this winter
weather more tolerable, especially when loaded up with the housemade
chile oil sitting on every table. BRIAN PANGANIBAN.

Grantâ€™s Philly Cheese Steaks

15350 NE Sandy Blvd., 252-8012. 10 am-7 pm Monday-Friday.

They say you can never go home again, but if youâ€™re from a
town like mineâ€”one with ample dining options for those who crave
oversized and greasy heart-attack foodâ€”outer Northeast Portland has
plenty of places to carb-cram like a true bumpkin. So donâ€™t get
distracted by the word â€śPhillyâ€ť here: The teeny country kitchen that is
Grantâ€™s Philly Cheese Steaks has formulated its own concoction of
way-too-much-minced-steak and a goo of your choice (they serve
provolone, cheddar, cream cheese or Americanâ€”but the melted cheese, as a
sign on the counter proudly announces, is nothing but the finest Kraft
Cheez Whiz) on soft, grease-dripping hoagies. Peppers and onions are
free on a $6 half-Philly (all but the longest-haul truckers should avoid
ordering the $10.50 full sandwich), but itâ€™s a buck more for mushrooms
and other such novelty items, which will make you feel slightly less
like a hyena tearing at a wildebeest carcass. We had a long time to
eavesdrop on the out-of-work locals while slowly picking at a sinful
mountain of cheese fries ($5.75), which turned out to be a totally
unnecessary side, considering the deliciously thick housemade potato
chips served for free with the cheesesteaks and gut-busting half-pound
burgers. CASEY JARMAN.

Ha & VL

2738 SE 82nd Ave., 772-0103. 8 am-4 pm daily.

Tucked away behind the Wing Ming herb market, this little
joint churns out soups to die for ($7.50, plus 50 cents extra if you
order it to go). Regulars keep track of which soups appear on which
daysâ€”these change, but itâ€™s worth following the crabflake noodle soup (banh canh cua)
wherever it appears on the calendar. (At press time, it was the Monday
special.) The broth is insanely rich and vividly orange, to the point
that the quail egg floating in it is tinted pink. (This is a good
thing.) Another favorite is the peppery pork ball noodle soup (bun moc),
currently served on Wednesdays but also worth chasing if it moves.
Tuesdays are sandwiches and coffee only, but every other day of the week
is a good bet. Be sure to get to the restaurant before noon if your
heart is set on a particular soup, as they do run out occasionally. BECKY OHLSEN.

There are only a few good, authentic Middle Eastern places
in this town, and Habibi surely figures among them. The downtown
Lebanese-Syrian standard, which recently expanded into the space next
door and added a second location on Southwest Pine Street, is dependably
delicious and reasonably priced. Habibiâ€™s mezza platter ($10.95) offers
a fairly comprehensive survey of Near East flavors, from smooth hummus
to tangy tzatziki; served with fresh, airy pita, itâ€™s enough to feed at
least a couple of people. For your main dish, get a sandwich ($6-$6.50),
but stick with something vegetarianâ€”the meat is a bit tough. (Editorâ€™s note: Blasphemer! Order the lamb shawarma!) Round off your meal with a flaky, honey-suffused baklava ($3) and cups of the strong, sweet Turkish coffee ($3.75). JONATHAN FROCHTZWAJG.

Even on a slow Thursday afternoon, when the lone server is
busying herself scrubbing salt shakers and kitchen chatter is getting
loose and gossipy, Halibutâ€™s keeps its customers waiting. But weâ€™re
talking fish and chips here, so that wait is a welcome oneâ€”it portends
fries still sizzling from their oil bath and hot strips of Alaskan
halibut ($18 for a full order, $10 for half) sporting light, crisp
carapaces of flaky batter. The adjoining bar hosts live blues Thursday
through Saturday nights, although it is difficult to imagine anything
soul stirring occurring within walls so devoted to Oregon Ducks pride.
Also, getting drunk in proximity to clam chowder ($6 for a bowl, $12 for
a tureen) just seems like an awful idea, so go on a lazy weekday, when
the natural light slanting in through the front windows and the happy
banter of people not working too hard transforms Halibutâ€™s into a
land-locked oasis of coastal vacation vibes. CHRIS STAMM.

Sushi joints can be frightening for the uninitiated, but
the welcoming, family-owned Hama Sushi is perfect for rookies, with a
friendly staff that doesnâ€™t judge unknowledgeable patrons for stabbing
sashimi with chopsticks. A respectable non-sushi menu includes a lunch
combo of chicken teriyaki paired with the go-to for casual sushi lovers,
California roll ($6.75), as well as bento, donburi and noodle options.
For the true warrior, combo platters offer a colorful explosion of raw
fish, including the Sushi Combo ($12.95), a massive collection of
bite-sized sushi and sashimi that includes spongy river eel, tuna,
hamachi, sea bass, surf clam (which resembles fishy Neapolitan ice
cream) and more, paired with cloudy miso and tangy sunomono cucumber
chunks. Toss in a bottle of dry sake, and Hama is a great crash course
for newcomers, a smorgasbord for veterans and a date spot for folks who
prefer to scarf sushi without the pressure and spectacle. AP KRYZA.

An aptly named establishment, this. Itâ€™s almost impossible
not to emerge cheerful and chirpy from this cute, colorful Belmont
cafe. The house specialty is kolaches ($1.95-$2.75 each), a
traditional Czech pastry that has found its way to this small corner of
Portland via Texas. Every day, Happy Sparrow bakes dozens of these
little briochelike buns, and fills them with a rotating assortment of
locally sourced ingredients. On any given visit, the savory offerings
might include spicy barbecue pulled chicken, a hearty vegan vegetable or
a simple Tillamook cheddar. Sweet fillings range from the more
traditional smoky, crunchy poppyseed and date to some outrageously tasty
Nutella variationsâ€”ask them to nuke it first, so the insides ooze out
all gooey and warm. Just to add to the cross-cultural confusion, pair it
with a Vietnamese coffee, made strong and sweet with a proper phin drip filter over condensed milk. Sink this with three or four kolaches, and youâ€™ll be one happy little bird indeed. RUTH BROWN.

Portland has many restaurants that do the seasonal, local,
weâ€™re-friends-with-our-farmers new-menu-every-week thing. Portland has
many community cafes that do well-executed brunch classics. But this
city still has very few places that do both. Whilst we wouldnâ€™t quite
call Hash the Paleyâ€™s of Portlandâ€™s brunch scene, itâ€™s a bloody good
start. The restaurant delivers its namesake dish as an artfully arranged
pile of soft, herby potato cubes, individually pan-roasted with Carlton
Farms pork belly ($12), house-braised corned beef ($10.50) or seasonal
mushrooms (market price), and topped with a poached egg. A blackboard
next to the open kitchen greets guests with the dayâ€™s seasonal
offeringsâ€”on one visit, dishes were accompanied by poached pears with
cinnamon, brown sugar and hazelnuts. The Danish aebleskivers
($8.50) are outstandingâ€”soft pancake puffs served with sweet vanilla
sabayon and filled with warm fruit compote that explodes inside your
mouth. Caution: portions are adequate but not the three-meals-in-one
many have come to expect. This is not a hangover breakfast. But when you
want to start the day with a well-composed plate of simple, fresh
ingredients, Hash helps fill a gaping hole in Portlandâ€™s morning dining
scene. RUTH BROWN.

Helserâ€™s on Alberta

1538 NE Alberta St., 281-1477, helsersonalberta.com, 7 am-3 pm daily.

As we shivered outside waiting 45 minutes for a table to
wolf down Sunday brunch, we wondered if this packed Alberta Street spot
would be worth it. Turns out all those huddled masses were on to
something: a basic brunch with servings so big that many customers are
carrying leftover containers when they squeeze out through the tight
entryway. Put the crispy pepper bacon and eggs with a heap of potatoes
($7.50) in that tasty/huge category. The brioche French toast ($6.95)
needed a second cup of syrup for moisture. The pigs in a blanket ($8.95)
did not. Our waitress was unfrazzled and patient with us Helserâ€™s
newbies despite the tumult. HENRY STERN.

I stepped out of the Portland drizzle and into a weird
Southern dream. Shacklike downtown eatery Hillbilly Bentoâ€™s walls are
lined with handmade signs that make it look more like the clubhouse from
Little Rascals or a lakeside bait shop than a restaurant. Aside from a
heaping pile of wet, pulverized pulled pork (served with dirty rice and
flaky cornbread for $5.95), the bento menu is packed with willfully
populist soul food and gut-sticking, gravy-based items youâ€™d expect from
a county fair. Great care goes into making the food, from collard
greens to pecan pie. It looks and tastes homemadeâ€”or at least high-end
cafeteria-made, as one can get a good look at the full spread before
choosing an item. Itâ€™s just ducky. CASEY JARMAN.

Hot Pot City

1975 SW 1st Ave., 224-6696. 11:30 am-4 pm and 5-9:30 pm daily.

Sit at the bar at Hot Pot City because itâ€™s more fun.
Thereâ€™s no booze, thoughâ€”the only thing on tap is soda. Chinese hot pot
(lunch $8.65; dinner $14.65 adults, $10 kids) is basically cook your own
damn soup. Choose a boil-at-your-table broth; add whatever raw
vegetables, meat, seafood, and noodles you want; cook and eat. Over and
over. Fixings at the buffet include super-fresh seafood (shark, catfish,
Pacific oysters), meats (various cuts of chicken, beef, pork, offal)
and loads of veggies and noodles. There are eight spicy and not-so-spicy
broths to choose from, including Thai hot and sour (my favorite) and Ma
la Chinese spicy herb broth. Come hungry, because Hot Pot City is an
all-you-can-slurp enterprise. LIZ CRAIN.

This Palestinian-owned corner bistro has an entryway every
bit as quiet as its name, its view blocked from the sidewalk by a broad
support pillar. The decor is also unremarkableâ€”colorful but Spartan,
and a bit cramped during busy hours. The food, however, makes Hush Hush
one of the best Middle Eastern lunch spots in a downtown already packed
with Lebanese options. The lamb and chicken shawarma plates ($7.50),
tender-cooked and thickly sauced over basmati rice, are probably their
best-loved items; the falafel, also, is crisp on the outside, flaky on
the inside, just on the right side of moist. Itâ€™s the bread, though,
that takes the proverbial cake; you can watch the cooks roll out their
unleavened wares from scratch, if you want to make the kitchen nervous.
Accordingly, I favor the pita wraps ($5.25-$6.50) and especially the sfiha
($6), a personal-size pizza topped modestly with lamb, onions, tomato
and â€śsecret spicesâ€ť that (to this palate) seem to involve a healthy dose
of coriander and cumin. Thick, flattened dough, soft but firm, forms
the base; it is a foundation I would build nations upon. MATTHEW KORFHAGE.

In a town full of trendy, inventive sushi
restaurants with hourlong waits, Ichidai canâ€™t much compete on
atmosphere, innovation or sustainability. Nestled in a nondescript
Powell Boulevard office building also housing a Chinese income tax
service and an adoption center, the restaurant is not the place to
sample three varieties of Marine Stewardship Council-certified salmon
sashimi. But sometimes you just want the basics, served in portions
generous enough to last for tomorrowâ€™s leftovers, and thatâ€™s where
Ichidai shines. The three-roll dinner ($13.95), with choices from the
usual hand-roll suspects, is enough food for two, while the colorful
Tsunami salad ($9) seems to have more fish than greens. The teriyaki is
unexciting, but the fried chicken katsu is surprisingly juicy. Ichidai
isnâ€™t a place youâ€™d bring visiting guests to flaunt Portlandâ€™s foodie
credentials, but with a friendly staff and an oddly compelling
soundtrack of gentle birdsong and guitar, you may just want to make a
stop after dropping them at the airport. CRAIG BEEBE.

J Cafe

533 NE Holladay St., 230-9599, jcafepdx.com. 7 am-4 pm Monday-Friday.

A true surprise in the midst of the Lloyd
District, the J Cafe is an oasis in a desert of bland hotels, mallrats
and Blazers. A clean, small space (be wary of noontime crowds), it
serves typical lunch fare with atypical fervor. Choose from Jâ€™s long
roster of panini, grilled wonders both gooey and fresh. The Rose City is
a standout: thinly sliced black forest ham on a bed of melted Tillamook
Swiss, drizzled Dijon mayonnaise adding a nice bite ($7.50). Each
panino comes with mixed greens and a bag of Timâ€™s, probably handed off
to you by J himself (owner Jonathan Cross). J-goers are dressed for
business, and probably talking it, too, but the bright space and cozy,
fast service (not to mention the tantalizing smell of pressed panini)
makes it feel like more than just an hour out of your workday. CAITLIN MCCARTHY.

You may not realize, upon first visiting J&M Cafe,
that youâ€™ve never been there before. It is so very Southeast Portland in
all the best ways, with brick walls, exposed wooden rafters, local and
organic everything, self-serve Stumptown and a silly, tattoo-inspired
logo featuring a winged pig head. So why choose J&M over the rest?
Well, its relative obscurity helps keep brunch lines down, and itâ€™s so
centrally located itâ€™s not much of a trek from any quadrant. But the
best part is the breakfast menu, a revised version of which is held over
for lunch. Meat-lovers choose the J&M Plate, with melted cheeses
and basted eggs laid over English muffins, crisscrossed by ridiculously
succulent slabs of Willamette Valley bacon ($7.95). Herbivores go for
the French toast made from a baguette ($7.25) and, to keep things
savory, a side of the crispy grilled grits ($3.50). Ainâ€™t nothing like a
true Southeast breakfast. CAITLIN MCCARTHY.

Lucy and April Eklundâ€™s airy Sellwood cafe offers dozens
of teas from around the world and enormous platters of Thai and
Vietnamese standards. The restaurant is unusual for the neighborhood in
that itâ€™s cheap, reliably enjoyable and actually a pleasant place to be,
and so is usually packed. Always good are the minced chicken with mint
and cilantro ($10), ridiculously large steamed hum bao ($3) with
barbecued pork or curried vegetables, sweet and spicy chile noodles ($9)
and sour, crispy salt-and-pepper squid ($8). Donâ€™t be shy about
ordering from the lengthy list of daily specials, eitherâ€”a sweet pumpkin
curry was the ideal antidote to mid-January chills. The Eklunds are no
slouches when it comes to pastry, either. Try the carrot cake. BEN WATERHOUSE.

Walking in here is like getting an unexpected, welcome
hug. Anchoring a strip mall in bleakest suburbia, JCD looks off-putting
from the outside, but indoors is a tiny universe of delight. A few
wooden booths populate the dimly lit cafe; itâ€™s charmingly decorated,
with antique-papered walls, faded paintings, basket lanterns and one big
TV near the cash register, broadcasting Asian game shows. The worldâ€™s
sweetest couple runs the kitchen: She takes orders, he cooks and
occasionally peeks out to see whom heâ€™s cooking for. The banchan (a
variety of appetizers included with the meal) include shining examples
of kimchi, thinly sliced fish cake and golden cubes of solidified heaven
called gam jaâ€”braised potato seasoned with honey and sesame.
Those potatoes alone could turn a bad day around. But it couldnâ€™t hurt
to order a scallion-seafood pancake ($9.95). JCDâ€™s version is the best
Iâ€™ve had, with a hot and crisp crust around a dense, custardy middle,
filled with chunks of green onion, peppers, tender shrimp, oysters and
squid. BECKY OHLSEN.

Between the pastel paint on the walls and abundance of
chicken breast, blue cheese and artichoke hearts on the menu, youâ€™d be
forgiven for feeling like youâ€™d hitched a ride back to 1993 upon opening
the door to the John Street Cafe. However, given that much of the
neighborhoodâ€™s main drag hasnâ€™t progressed beyond the late 1970s (which,
letâ€™s face it, is why we love St. Johns in the first place), eating at
this always-packed brunch joint feels practically modern. Fresh
vegetables abound on both the breakfast and lunch menus, and the sizable
lunch sandwiches, instead of coming with the diner-standard side of
freezer-burned iceberg lettuce, are accompanied by either roasted
potatoes or a sweet-and-vinegary cucumber salad. You canâ€™t go wrong with
the TABâ€”sliced turkey breast, avocado and bacon on thick and crusty
whole wheat bread ($9.75)â€”and be sure to check the specials board above
the cash register for the dayâ€™s soups and desserts. KAT MERCK.

What a novel conceptâ€”a brunch place where you donâ€™t have
to wait 30 minutes! But donâ€™t take the lack of weekday overflow as a
sign of the quality of Juniorâ€™s food, because the small Laddâ€™s Addition
joint makes a damn fine plate of migas ($8) with a side of killer
potatoes. Though they could use a bit of extra kick (thatâ€™s what the
Aardvark sauce is for!), the migas at Juniorâ€™s rival Podnahâ€™s Pit for
the best Tex-Mex dish in Portland, a heaping plate of fluffy eggs
scrambled with tortillas, onions, peppers and tomatoes. Almost
everything on the menu has a vegan option, and an order of coffee comes
with half and half, soy or hemp milk. Donâ€™t tell Fred Armisen and Carrie
Brownstein, or Juniorâ€™s could become a new punch line. MICHAEL MANNHEIMER.

Its name might slightly irk the Italian-American
Anti-Defamation Leagueâ€”frankly, itâ€™s sillier than all of Portlandâ€™s
puntastic Thai joints combinedâ€”but at least thereâ€™s truth in its
advertising. Indeed, Justa Pasta is all abouta the pasta (my Sicilian
grandmother just dry-heaved in her grave). Oh, there are other items on
the menu, including daily lunch specials ($6.95-$11.95) featuring
panini, risotto and lasagna, but the focus is on the food on the
marquee. And as goofy as the name might be, owner Roland Carfagno is a
veteran pastamaker who knows his success rests on the restaurantâ€™s
simplicity. Just choose a pasta (spaghetti, ravioli, linguine, fusilli),
pair it with a sauce (the garlic chile oil is a favorite of regulars),
grab a bottle of wine off the rack and voilĂ ! A meal fit for the cast of Jersey Shore! (Sorry again, Grandma.) MATT SINGER.

Kabob House

11667 SW Beaverton-Hillsdale Highway, 672-9229. 11 am-9 pm daily.

Youâ€™ve been looking for an excuse to visit Beaverton Town
Square, right? Well, here it is. Never guessed this would be the place
to go for quality Persian food, huh? Situated in the shadow of a
strip-mall clock tower, Kabob House offers exactly what its name
suggests. It lacks atmosphereâ€”YouTube videos of Iranian pop stars donâ€™t
exactly qualify as ambienceâ€”but excels in taste and quantity. The
kebabs, naturally, are the best things on the menu, available with beef,
chicken or vegetables and served with plentiful amounts of rice. Of
course, thereâ€™s always the chance youâ€™ll fill up beforehand on the
complimentary flatbread that arrives at the table with onion, basil and
butter. Be careful not to gorge yourself too early. After all, whenâ€™s
the next time youâ€™ll make it out to the â€™burbs? MATT SINGER.

If youâ€™re a novice to Lebanese cuisine, the food at Karam
makes you feel right at home. Basics are executed quite wellâ€”silky
tahini, pillows of warmed pita, and the effortless brilliance that is
the restaurantâ€™s hummus. If youâ€™re hungry for something other than
chickpeas, thereâ€™s a large menu and a staff willing to take you through
it. Many dinner offerings are available at lunch at a lower price but
sacrifice little in portion or flavor. Pumpkin kibbe ($9.95) is
quite good, offering a hearty, crunchy and well-spiced meal. Some of the
kebab meats can be tough, and the veggie grape leaves, though moist and
tender, are saturated in lemon juice. If youâ€™re more adventurous, have
dinner. There youâ€™ll find many traditional meals (goat!) served with
humble panache. And when the mealâ€™s over and you take home leftovers,
which will happen, theyâ€™ll serve as the reminder you need to go back
soon. AARON FURMANEK.

Ken Forkishâ€™s local bread palace is known for a lot of
things, from flaky-perfect croissants to the most toothsome, crusty
baguettes in town. One thing itâ€™s been missing? Banh mi, the addictive
little sub sandwiches of Vietnam. The Kenâ€™s version ($8) is more of a
happy Viet-French hybrid, smearing rough-chopped chicken-liver terrine
amped up with Chinese five-spice powder, a bit of fish sauce and
Szechuan peppercorns atop a toasted baguette. Add wasabi mayo, crunchy
sweet-â€™nâ€™-sour pickled carrot and daikon (of course), and a squirt of
sriracha and youâ€™ve got a hot and spicy lunch thatâ€™s a continent away
from Kenâ€™s usual lunch fare of soups and impeccable sandwiches. If
you arenâ€™t in the mood for banh mi, the pastries are excellentâ€”the
croissants, flaky, implausibly buttery and feather-light, are works of
art. KELLY CLARKE.

Kenny & Zukeâ€™s SandwichWorks

2376 NW Thurman St., 954-1737, kzsandwichworks.com. 11 am-8 pm daily.

That Kenny and Zukeâ€”what a couple of mensches! First, Ken
Gordon and Nick Zukin brought Jewish deli fare to Portland with their
eponymous downtown restaurant. Then, a couple of years back, they opened
this sandwich-centric outfit in Northwest for our noshing pleasure. For
strict carnivores, the Italian grinder ($5.50 half, $8.75 whole) is a
tasty choice. It comes with four Italian meatsâ€”youâ€™ve got your salami,
your soppressata, your hot coppa and your mortadellaâ€”all on a hoagie
soaked in oil and vinegar. Of SandwichWorksâ€™ too-few vegetarian choices,
the ratatouille sandwich ($4.50 half, $7.50 whole) is the way to go.
The stewed-veggie filling is spot-on, and it spills luxuriantly from a
fresh, aioli-spread hoagie. During happy hour (3-6 pm Monday-Friday), a
half-sandwich and a cup of soup is just $6, and pints of local, seasonal
beer are only $2.50. Lâ€™chaim! JONATHAN FROCHTZWAJG.

As a Chinese restaurant, itâ€™s tough to distinguish
yourself in a part of town thatâ€™s also home to Wongâ€™s King, Ocean City,
Wing Wa BBQ and Fubonn, but this triangular house of Hong Kong noodles
has a secret weapon: really great congee. The staff may look askance
when you request the traditional fishy rice porridge, but endure the
stares and tell â€™em you want both the tender rockfish as well as the
pork liver and the mushroomy preserved egg in your silky slop. At $4.50
to $7 a bowl (depending on extras), itâ€™s a unique, belly-warming dish
and an unbeatable value. Kennyâ€™s roster of other offerings, from spicy
pork and egg noodles to plump dumplings swimming in chicken broth, are
just OK, but that congee that might make a winter regular out of you. KELLY CLARKE.

According to Killer Burger, the no-nonsense meat shack
that recently took over Nascaâ€™s corner digs on Northeast Sandy
Boulevard, a burger ainâ€™t a burger until itâ€™s topped with crispy bacon,
grilled onions, thick pickle slices and a slather of smoky, orange
mayo-relish sauceâ€¦so thatâ€™s what every order starts with. Build on that
crunchy, greasy, juicy base with everything from mild green chiles and
Jack cheese (the Jose Mendoza, $7.95) to housemade sweet peanut-butter
sauce. Lucky for purists, Killerâ€™s one-third pound of
moist, seared beef plopped atop a buttered, toasted Franz bun is good
enough to stand alone, especially since each order comes with a
bottomless side of thick, deeply golden, perfectly salted fries. Killer
doesnâ€™t do options; there are no salads, hot dogs or even onion rings
(although there is a lone veggie burger). And you will drink soda or
beer (thereâ€™s both Ninkasi and PBR on tap). Itâ€™s not fancy, folksâ€”just
killer. KELLY CLARKE.

King Burrito

2924 N Lombard St., 283-9757. 10 am-11 pm daily.

You donâ€™t go to a place like King Burrito sober. Itâ€™s
possible, mind you, but such phenomena as coin-operated dispensers of
religious-themed temporary tattoos, inexplicably hard-laminated copies
of the Arbor Lodge neighborhood newsletter, and burritos the size and
heft of a small log (only $3.95!) are best experienced with a drunkâ€™s
heightened sense of appreciation. Otherwise, King Burrito stands as just
another solid yet geographically anonymous installment of its genreâ€”The
Cheap Yet Reliably Good Mexican Takeout Place That Time Forgot, that of
the water-stained drop ceiling and hard plastic trays and white people
who roll their Râ€™s when ordering a bottle of Jarritos. Since youâ€™re at
King Burrito, odds are youâ€™re looking for value, not foodie cred, so try
the chimichangaâ€”for only $5.75, youâ€™ll receive a paper boat literally
overflowing with meat, fried tortilla, lettuce, tomatoes, avocado and
sour cream. It probably wonâ€™t be Oregon Tilth-certified, or local, or
organic, or even in season, but, provided youâ€™re still drunk, it will
be, like, the best thing youâ€™ve ever eaten in your life, man. KAT MERCK.

Hungry Alberta hoppers are faced with a tough choice at
the intersection of Northeast 27th Avenue: La Sirenita or La Bonita? Two
of the cityâ€™s most popular Mexican cafes are within a tamaleâ€™s toss of
one another. If you crave a California burrito, hit the former. For
anything else (or for considerably less grease), La Bonita is damn near
impossible to beat. Chicken enchiladas ($8.95) melt in the mouth and
come swimming in a lake of green or red sauce with beans, rice and
guacamole. Tacos ($2 and up) are loaded with everything from crispy
carnitas to fleshy fish and some of the best slow-roasted lengua in
town. Step in line (itâ€™s worth the typical 10-minute wait, which grows
exponentially during Last Thursday) and get ready for some of the best,
most authentic Mexican food in town. AP KRYZA.

From the outside, decorated with Dia de los Muertos-themed
murals, La Calaca Comelona looks more like some sort of Mexican
cultural center than a restaurant. And, in a way, its mission is much
the same. Owner and head chef Patricia Cabrera wants to expand her
patronsâ€™ culinary literacy when it comes to Mexico, beyond the typical
food-cart fare. Although she does serve the usual tacos and
quesadillasâ€”all made fresh, with house salsas and imported
ingredientsâ€”the highlights are the dinner specials, which branch out to
include such things as conchinita pibil ($20), a pork dish from the
Yucatan cooked in banana leaves and garnished with orange slices. While
itâ€™s pricey, you get what you pay for (the $18 enchiladas morelianas
is piled so high with cheese, onions, pickled jalapeĂ±os and other
toppings you have to dig just to get to the actual enchiladas). The more
cheaply priced tortas, tostadas and salads ($7-$8) are equally
delicious and filling. MATT SINGER.

Le Happy hits an ideal balance of sassy and sweet with red
light bulbs and busted eyeglasses tacked to the walls, as well as a
cheerful patchwork jumble of plastic flowers above the bar and votive
candles set at each table. This crĂŞperieâ€™s offerings are appropriately
varied as well. Go classy with the Ma Provence, a comforting, herby
blend of chicken, tomatoes and cheeses ($8) or coarse with Le Trash
Blanc, a bacon and cheddar crĂŞpe ($6, $7.50 with a PBR). The sweet
crĂŞpes are the ones that really sing, including the tart citron gingembre
($6), filled with tangy lemon curd and punches of fresh ginger, or
anything with the house semisweet chocolate sauce. Bonus points: Le
Happy is open late and boasts a sizable cocktail roster, and itâ€™s got a
serious stack of board games in the back. REBECCA JACOBSON.

With Portlandâ€™s hunger for Peruvian food growing ever
bigger, Limo could become a favorite among foodies who like their raw
fish limey, checks manageable and ambience homey. Located in the
building off Northwest 23rd Place that once housed Cameo Cafe, Limo is
tiny and candlelit, offering a cozy dining experience enhanced by a
sprawling patio. The piqueos (tapas) menu offers delights like eggplant or beef skewers, tequeĂ±os ($8)â€”crisp, won ton-wrapped mozzarella served with a huancaĂ­na
(spicy cheese) sauceâ€”and a globe-spanning lineup of ceviches. The
classic ceviche ($12) has a spot-on citric tang, with chilled chunks of
tilapia swimming in lime and cilantro. The enticing seco ($19)â€”braised lamb, served atop a mound of mashed potatoes and dripping with aji mirasol, garlic and spicesâ€”is tender and delicious, like a finely crafted pot roast. AP KRYZA.

Little Big Burger

122 NW 10th Ave., 274-9008, littlebigburger.com. 11 am-10 pm nightly.

Micah Camden, the seemingly tireless chef who has in the
past five years had a hand in the openings of Yakuza, Naomi Pomeroyâ€™s
Beast, DOC and Fats, is often described as having a â€śrestaurant empire.â€ť
The string of eateries along Northeast 30th Avenue is really more of a
fiefdom, but with Little Big Burger, Camden and co-owner Katie Poppe
have their sights set on world domination. The restaurant, which opened
in September and already has two more locations in the works, has only
six items on the menu: fries, floats, soda and burgers, with or without
cheese or meat. There are no plates on the shiny red-and-white counter;
all orders are delivered in paper bags. The burgers cost $3.25, $3.75
with cheddar, Swiss, chevre or blue; fries are $2.75. They are very good
fries; crisp and sweet and adequately salted, with maybe just a tad too
much truffle flavoring. The burger is also very good, with a
quarter-pound patty of first-rate cow flesh, seasoned with restraint,
cooked medium and slathered with Camdenâ€™s own sriracha-spiked ketchup
(you can take a bottle home, if you like). The bun is sturdy but quite
small, leading some Yelpers to whine that the burger is an overpriced
slider. Donâ€™t let yourself be fooledâ€”Iâ€™d guess this is a 500-calorie
burger; eating two for lunch would be unwise. BEN WATERHOUSE.

Savvy Portland taco-lovers (and vegetarians) knew the joys
of Los Gorditos when its oversized burritos and succulent tacos were
only available via a cart with a long lunchtime line. But in its
seamless 2008 transition to sit-down taqueria, Gorditos filled a gaping
hole in Southeast Portland cuisine, raising the stakes for inferior
local chains that have been good-enough options for far too long. Weâ€™re
rooting for Los Gorditos to take over the city: Its $1.75 tacos are
chunky and minimal in presentation (the carne asada is salty and
suitably charred); the burritos border on obscene in size and are
reasonable in price. The $6.50 Super Stacey is on the pricier side of
Los Gorditosâ€™ menu, but itâ€™s a crowning achievement in burrito
architecture, packed with cheese, red sauce, sour cream and a handful of
less-important non-sauce ingredients. The restaurant is quick, and the
impressive salsa bar even features queso dip. Still, vegans love Los
Gorditos, largely because of the taqueriaâ€™s mastery of that increasingly
invasive species, soy curls. Gorditosâ€™ soy-curl fajita burrito ($6) is a
good option for the vegetarians, as well: Just add cheese, then pray
for the stamina to actually finish the thing. CASEY JARMAN.

Lovejoy Bakers

939 NW 10th Ave., 208-3113, lovejoybakers.com. 6 am-6 pm daily.

This previously cursed Pearl District space seems to have
finally found a keeper with baker Dan Griffinâ€™s new shrine to the
carbohydrate. In addition to excellent artisan breads and pastries, the
bakery-cum-cafe offers a range of made-to-order sandwiches, soups and
salads. The sandwich menu features fancy riffs on classics like Cubanos
($8), Reubens ($8.50) and pastrami on rye ($9.50). You can pay $8 for a
banh mi if you really wantâ€”the extra clams go toward high-quality,
locally sourced ingredients and the privilege of dining alongside
citizens of Planet Pearlâ€”but for our dough, the all-day breakfast
sandwiches are the money. Five bucks gets you soft folds of scrambled
egg and fontina cheese stuffed into a buttery ciabatta rollâ€”a sublimely
simple combination guaranteed to send you into a blissful tryptophan
coma for the rest of the day. Spend the difference on something sweet. RUTH BROWN.

Lucky Strike moved last year from a
ghetto strip mall and payday lender east of 123rd Avenue to Hawthorne,
but the food remains phenomenal. Jiaozi dumplings, plump with savory
pork and cabbage, nestle in a pool of ruddy chile sauce. A mound of
verdant Chinese chives hides chunks of pork belly studded with ginger
and mouth-tingling Szechuan peppercorns. And Lucky Strikeâ€™s signature
â€śhot pepper chicken bathâ€ť lives up to its intimidating hype, with
angry-looking red chiles spilling from the plate with each stab of the
chopsticks. Nothing has changed about the crusty-edged Guinness pork
ribs ($10), caramelized to a rich brown in soy and Irish stout. And the
â€śspicy noodle with pork ribsâ€ť ($8)â€”a knot of noodles twisting through
tender pork and aromatic broth laden with star anise and the ubiquitous
Szechuan peppercornsâ€”is still among the best things Iâ€™ve ever eaten.
Newbie tip: The entrance is through the doors marked â€śArista.â€ť ETHAN SMITH.

Many bars in Portland advertise a happy-hour menu that is
cheap, convenient and delicious, but few actually live up to the hype.
But let me tell you, the $5 happy-hour burger at Matchbox Lounge is the
real deal: a third of a pound of Painted Hills beef, served with a tangy
aioli and your choice of cheese (go for the manchego) for just a dollar
more. Itâ€™s easily one of the best burgers in town, so good that
ordering the full version ($11 with pancetta and greens) as an entree is
totally worth the price. The rest of Matchboxâ€™s menu is surprisingly
versatile for a place to get a cheap drinkâ€”especially the mini
pizzettas, including a crusty pie topped with squash, caramelized
onions, and chevre ($10) thatâ€™s so sweet enough it almost qualifies as a
dessert. MICHAEL MANNHEIMER.

I miss my sandwich. I feel like we didnâ€™t
see enough of each other. There was our initial meeting (hello, long
stems of seasoned, blackened green beans, chipped Parmesan, soft-boiled
egg and aioli) and then poof! It was gone. Like it never even
happened. Like I never stepped foot in John Stewartâ€™s modern-take
farmtown lunch counter, never stood at that counter to discuss switching
my green bean sandwichâ€™s ($8) bacon relish for sherry onions, which
were a purple hue absent from even the most colorful sunset. (Thank you
to the cook who presented me with such an idea.) Itâ€™s like the footlong,
rustic roll was never in front of me, because I didnâ€™t give it much
time there. Meat Cheese Bread combines local, straightforward
ingredients (Neuskeâ€™s smoked bacon, grilled broccolini, preserved lemon
dressing) in just the way that could break me from my vegetarianism. NIKKI VOLPICELLI.

Look, if you come to Melt, you come for the happy hour.
Sure, youâ€™d be skipping out on the regular menuâ€™s soppressata pizza
($10), which is a shame, but Meltâ€™s happy hour (which lasts, in
near-retarded obliviousness to the form, from 2 pm to close, which means
it excludes only lunch) is comfort foodâ€™s apotheosis: cheap, hearty and
varied, from a $5 half-pound of wings to a duplex of cabbage-slawed
pork sliders ($4) to a baked mac â€™nâ€™ cheese ($4) that lives up to the
restaurantâ€™s name. Otherwise, hey, itâ€™s a place for a sunny drink after a
book club or day hike; itâ€™s far too well-lit, with feng shui far too
domestic-weird (the kitchen imposes from every angle) to ever feel
anything but wholesome. And if you donâ€™t like whatâ€™s playing over the
P.A., just go to the restroom, which has its own very private sound
system in the form of an AM/FM clock radio tucked inside a little corner
table by the toilet. No kiddinâ€™. MATTHEW KORFHAGE.

Miho Izakaya

4057 N Interstate Ave., 719-6152, mihopdx.com. 5-11 pm daily.

Miho, a humble house lit gently by the neon glare of the
Alibi across the street, is a fairly new entry in Portlandâ€™s recent love
affair with the izakaya (Japanese food and sake bar). For that, itâ€™s
quickly carved out a niche as an ĂĽber-friendly, low-price-point hangout
for the Northeast crowd. Chef Michael Miho skews toward comfort Japanese
with personal twists; the heaping roast pork ramen ($8) has a dominant
note of smoke, while the rich pork belly skewers come seared on all
sides for texture (more chefs should do this so well) with an
accompanying sweet egg that doubles as goofy, half-savory dessert.
Asparagus ($6) comes crisp and glazed in miso butter. Donâ€™t worry if you
donâ€™t know what to order; co-owner Michael Carothers has a habit of
cheerily soft-upselling you into sated, drunken oblivion. But be alert:
If they offer you the tatami room your meat might end up tasting like
your neighborâ€™s socks, so choose your neighbors wisely. MATTHEW KORFHAGE.

If you wander into this shiny new Italian deli-bakery, you
should really order the Caesar salad ($6). Itâ€™s a testament to how the
potential for greatness exists no matter how small the venue. The
chopped romaine is dressed perfectly, with huge shavings of sweet, nutty
grana padano sprinkled liberally over the huge platter (this is totally
a sharing salad unless itâ€™s all youâ€™re going to eat), but the real
kicker is the lightly grilled heart of seasoned romaine nested in the
center. The charred ends are smoky, sweet and salty, with a hard-boiled
egg, pickled in balsamic vinegar, sliced and fanned over the whole
thing. The salad makes enjoying the rest of Mistoâ€™s menu difficult,
since youâ€™ll be half stuffed after eating it, but it would be a shame to
miss out on one of the cafeâ€™s calzones, like the puttanesca ($8),
served with a tangy-sweet marinara laden with carrots. BRIAN PANGANIBAN.

The Harajuku-style crĂŞpe hails from a
region of Tokyo known for its outrageous fashions and trendy cafes. How
it ended up halfway around the world, flourishing among Mexican grocery
stores and used-car yards on this gritty stretch of Southeast Division
Street, weâ€™ll never know. Mojoâ€™s 10 crĂŞpe variations arenâ€™t quite as
extreme as some of their Japanese counterparts, which often contain
entire slices of cheesecake or chicken teriyaki, but still hit the sweet
spot. Each crĂŞpe ($5.25) is cooked up crispy and thin, then layered
with combinations of fruit, ice cream, syrups and other sucrose-based
delicacies, like crushed Oreos, Nutella and condensed milk. The whole
shebang is rolled into a cone shape and topped with whipped cream. None
of these elements is exceptional on its own, but combined they make for a
sloppy, sugary, silly treat. For something a little more exotic and
less likely to induce type 2 diabetes, the cafe recently added
Taiwanese-style shaved ice ($5.50)â€”delicate milky ice flakes covered in
more traditional Southeast Asian toppings, like red bean, taro, grass
jelly and lychees. RUTH BROWN.

In Beaverton, the land of 1,000 Korean restaurants, itâ€™s
hard for any of them to truly stand out. But Nakwon tries its damndest.
Folks swear by its tofu soups ($10-$12), but if youâ€™ve got an empty pit
in your stomach to fill, order the â€śbul-go-kiâ€ť platter ($13). Soon, your
table will be filled with a steaming plate of succulent stir-fried
marinated beef strips, rice and a host of other items to intermingle
with the meat. Honestly, you canâ€™t go wrong with any of the platters,
which also include the kalbi (barbecue ribs, $14) and the budae-chigae
($13), described as a â€śspicy military stewâ€ť with sausage, bacon, ramen,
tofu and, the coup de grĂ˘ce, Spam. Add some of the delectable pot
stickers as an appetizer ($7), and you wonâ€™t have to eat for the next
week. MATT SINGER.

You will probably be the youngest customer in Nancyâ€™s
Kitchen, but having brunch with the octogenarian set has its perks.
Thereâ€™s no waiting for a table at this relatively obscure shopfront
eatery, nor will it take long to have a signature Nancyâ€™s cinnamon roll
whisked to your table ($2.75). The scrambles and skillets get the job
done with few frills: Take the fluffy eggs; bright, thick-cut peppers
and onions; and thin strips of steak on the Portland steak omelette
($8.95). Skip the bland oven-fried potatoes and opt for a fresh biscuit
as a side instead. Nancyâ€™s turns into a deli/sandwich shop for the lunch
hour, but its breakfast is highly suggested. Remember those cinnamon
buns? Nancy makes a French toast out of â€™em ($6.95). CAITLIN MCCARTHY.

Unless you count the occasional fast-food
joint along this busy thoroughfare, Southwest Barbur Boulevard is what
you might call a food desert. Then consider New Delhi an Indian oasis.
Tucked into the corner of a small strip mall, New Delhi is the kind of
establishment you might not notice the first, 10th or 200th time you
pass it by. But once you do, youâ€™ll wish youâ€™d spotted it earlier.
Servings are plentiful; an appetizer of eggplant pakoras costs $3.95 but
could stretch to feed four. Dishes are spiced to suit customersâ€™
preferences. Vegan dishes donâ€™t outnumber the chicken, seafood, lamb,
beef and goat curries ($10.95-$13.95), but the owners of this
family-owned restaurant do helpfully point out the animal-eschewing
options with â€śvegan-friendlyâ€ť labels on their menu. Online reviewers
complain the restaurant lacks parking. But on a recent weekday evening,
at the peak dining hour, numerous spots sat empty, ready for hungry
diners. BETH SLOVIC.

The selling point at this 82nd Avenue strip-mall noodle shop is the Vietnamese soup bun bo hue
($8.50), phoâ€™s thick â€™nâ€™ spicy, blood cake-packed little sister. Ngoc
Hanâ€™s version is lighter and more herbaceous than other beef broth bowls
around town but still floating with fish balls, tendons and other body
parts. But thatâ€™s not all thatâ€™s worthy here: Donâ€™t overlook the airy
chamberâ€™s roster of vermicelli bowls ($7.50). A bed of slippery rice
noodles and shredded lettuce is topped with piles of grilled shrimp,
grilled pork, dried cold pork, bean sprouts, peanuts, green onions and
shredded carrot. Pour the sweet-â€™nâ€™-sour vinegar and fish sauce over the
top and youâ€™ve pretty much got the cobb salad of Vietnam. Genius.
Equally habit-forming is Ngoc Hanâ€™s spicy pork roll ($3.50), a salad
roll amped up with a peppery hybrid of barbecue pork and Viet ham, ready
for a dip in peanutty plum sauce. Bonus: The joint often plays Viet
karaoke videos on its TVs so you get to watch pretty Asian people walk
along a windswept beach and cry while you slurp your salted lemonade and
soup. KELLY CLARKE.

The tiny Southeast Grand Avenue location
of this two-decade-old Lebanese institution has always been considered
the best, but since the family-owned operation morphed its â€śArabian
Breezeâ€ť Middle Eastern restaurant on Northeast Broadway to just become a
straight-up Nicholas Part 2, itâ€™s rocketed its level in taste and
consistency (and the wait time for a table) sky high. The sunny
restaurant still serves a handful of the Breeze specialties, like
garlicky pickled baby eggplant makdous ($8.25) and slow-cooked lamb and garbanzo bean stew (riz-be-tfeen,
$12.25), but really itâ€™s all about basics like mezza plates ($9) and
the best kebabs ($9.25) in town. The veggie mezzaâ€™s bounty, from oniony
spinach pie and crunchy, aromatic falafel balls to creamy hummus and
tabbouleh, are enough for a full meal along with the giant, pillowy pita
that comes free, straight from the open kitchen up front to your table.
Add on chicken kebabs, a pair of 9-inch skewers of ridiculously moist,
marinated, grilled chicken, onions and peppers served atop a mountain of
flavorful rice and garlic cream sauce, and youâ€™ll have leftovers for a
week. KELLY CLARKE.

Itâ€™s tiny, with faux grape vines lining its intimate
dining room, workers tossing dough in open view of the cashier counter,
an indoor lamppost illuminating small tables where couples sip wine and
slurp pastaâ€¦hell, thereâ€™s probably a mutt in the back alley sharing a
plate of spaghetti with a cocker spaniel. Nicolaâ€™s is just that kind of
hole-in-the-wall Italian joint. And, as expected, the food is divine.
Pizzas like the Nicolaâ€™s Special ($8.99 for a â€śpersonalâ€ť pie that feeds
two) are perfectly chewy and loaded with thin-cut Italian sausage; pasta
dishes such as the tortellini pancetta ($12.99) come piled high
alongside flaky housemade bread and antipasti. All thatâ€™s missing is a
group of serenading musiciansâ€¦but chefs who chat you up while slathering
to-go pies in tangy sauce are a fine substitute. AP KRYZA.

In typical Portland progression, the new Nohoâ€™s Hawaiian
Cafe on Northeast Fremont Street has one-upped the Southeast Clinton
Street location. The Fremont Nohoâ€™s offers the same mouthwatering,
tender marinated â€śspicy Korean chickenâ€ť ($8.65 for a â€śmenehune,â€ť or
so-called small, and $14.15 for a â€śblalah,â€ť meaning leftovers for days)
and expertly done kalua pork ($8.85, $13.85), served with sticky white
rice and macaroni salad thatâ€™s better than your grandmaâ€™s. But unlike
Southeast, the Northeast Nohoâ€™s has a warm, woody bar, lovely outside
patio and a happy hour from 3 to 6 pm that will leave you as full as
dinner anywhere else. The service is outstandingâ€”this undercover
reviewer got offered a complimentary sample plate of teriyaki steak and
pork before her meal. If you have the strength to save room for dessert,
the coconut cake ($3.95) and chocolate-jalapeĂ±o pie ($3.50) are fresh
and flavorful. STACY BROWNHILL.

Sure, dinner at this stately Cantonese banquet hall near
Fubonn is enjoyable, but itâ€™s during the midmorning and lunch hours that
it really comes alive as the only Portland dim sum spot to rival Wongâ€™s
King. Extended Asian families and culinary thrill-seekers wait
patiently for up to an hour on weekends to burn their fingertips on hot,
little foil-wrapped packages of succulent ginger chicken and glutinous
deep-fried rice footballs stuffed with oozy spiced pork. All the
standards are represented here, whizzing around your head in clackety
little carts piloted by small, insistent women armed with ladles and
scissors: The stuffed noodles are toothsome, the roasted duck is moist
and juicy, and the Chinese greens perfectly steamed. Pace yourself.
Youâ€™re not going to be able to resist that last order of delicate green
onion and shrimp dumplings. Itâ€™d be a shame if your stomach exploded on
your very first visit to China. KELLY CLARKE.

Tucked into a quiet nook south of downtown, Old Lair Hill
Market Cafe looks the part of an undistinguished neighborhood spot with
just-OK food. The cafe starts winning you over, though, with its utterly
incoherent decorâ€”a sort of cross between a European cafe and your
grandparentsâ€™ sitting roomâ€”and its general, refreshing lack of
self-consciousness. Then it hits it home with equally straightforward,
delicious sandwiches. The toasted Reuben ($6.75) is done right, and the
avocado Swiss melt ($5.95) is a good veggie option, but it was the moist
and surprisingly light meatloaf sandwich ($7.25) that stole my heart.
Looking for a low-key after-work-drinks spot downtown? Lair Hill has a
sensibly priced full bar as well. JONATHAN FROCHTZWAJG.

Isnâ€™t it a shame most of us indulge in Bavarian cuisine
only during Oktoberfest? Imagine if we limited our consumption of other
ethnic delights to specific holidays: burritos exclusively on Cinco de
Mayo, whiskey blackouts limited to St. Patrickâ€™s Day. Sounds shitty,
right? So thereâ€™s no reason to put off a trip to Otto and Anitaâ€™s in
Multnomah Village. It has the look and feel of a European country
cottage and a menu packed with gorgeable varieties of schnitzels and
sausages. Try the zigeunerschnitzel ($12.95), two pieces of pork loin
slathered in a red wine paprika sauce and surrounded with carrots,
greens and spaetzles (basically German pasta). Or, for a bit more coin,
order the JĂ¤germeister steak ($23), an 8-ounce filet mignon flamed in
the titular liqueur. (Note to frat boys: Donâ€™t bother trying to take a
shot of the juice.) MATT SINGER.

Greasy Thai food, like cold pizza and lasagna, is almost
as good, if not better, the next day. So the fact that Pad Thai
Kitchenâ€™s servings are so ginormous that no one person could finish a
heaping plate of pad Thai ($9 with your choice of meat or tofu) or the
excellent, rich pumpkin curry (same price, or $10.50 for shrimp or
scallops) makes the meal that much more enjoyable. Pad Thai Kitchen
makes no bones about reinventing the wheelâ€”it serves Americanized takes
on Thai food, and you wonâ€™t find anything too weird on the menu. But it
does do the staples very well, and any order can be made mild to appease
your picky-eater parents. Just be sure to ask for a doggie bag. MICHAEL MANNHEIMER.

With a meat-centered menu that could cure the most severe
protein deficiency, Pause can churn out a substantial lunch or dinner
for under $10. Pause looks somewhere between a diner and a sports bar,
and is dimly lit, open late and an oasis of good food on an otherwise
unfrequented stretch of North Interstate Avenue. The housemade pickles
that garnish most dishes are surprisingly good and make an interesting
appetizer on their own. Pauseâ€™s warm and cold sandwiches are good for
lunch and dinnerâ€”the Cuban sandwich ($8) is a real showstopper. With
roast pork, house ham and whole-grain-mustard aioli, it manages to be
moist without collapsing into a soggy mess, is salty and a little spicy,
and not as sweet as your average pork sandwich. Entrees like the mac
â€™nâ€™ cheese with house sausage ($12) and cider-braised Tails &
Trotters pork with potato salad ($14) are classic Portland collisions of
gourmet and grunge. RACHAEL DEWITT.

The name started out as a somewhat elaborate joke about
this cityâ€™s Bolshevik tendencies (signs were made for the kitchen
reading â€śProductionâ€ť), but the gray concrete-and-brick corner shop
really does feel like a grim Soviet bunker dropped behind the lines of
Western decadence. Itâ€™s between the horrible Old Town bar McFaddenâ€™s and
the horrible Old Town dance club the Whiskey Bar, and there are plenty
of other horrible places nearby that on weekend nights flood the
sidewalks with horrible people who have no idea how to walk in heels and
who feel like getting in fights. So donâ€™t sit too close to the windows,
is what Iâ€™m saying. The sandwiches are good, though they should trust
their Northwest-sourced ingredients a bit more; the Portland cheesesteak
($8 with house-fried chips) is packed with thin-sliced beef and
thick-cut onions, but itâ€™s seasoned with way too much pepper. Its status
as menu strongman is challenged by a salami and ham grinder called the
Argento arrabbiata ($8); befitting the surroundings, if you order one to
go, itâ€™s marked â€śAA.â€ť AARON MESH.

Off-white and rust-streaked outside,
mottled purple and Dennyâ€™s-esque in, Pho Hung is, by all appearances,
another Southeast Powell Boulevard eatery to drive by. If you do stop to
eat at this pho joint, though, youâ€™ll forgive it for looking so
blandâ€”see, theyâ€™ve gone and put all their flavor into the food. My meal
at Pho Hung was my first experience with the Vietnamese national dish,
and not wanting to be revealed as a pho newbie, I fearlessly ordered a
challenging-sounding variation involving tendon and tripe. The server,
in a merciful and face-saving move, pointedly suggested one with eye of
round steak and well-done flank ($7 small, $7.50 large)â€”under the menuâ€™s
â€śFor Beginnersâ€ť heading. The thin-sliced meat was succulently infused
with the beef-bone broth, which in turn was infused with an unusual, at
turns bitter and spicy, blend of star anise, green onion, parsley and
ginger. The kicker? The portions: You wonâ€™t get this much food for $7.50
practically anywhere else. JONATHAN FROCHTZWAJG.

Pho Oregon

2518 NE 82nd Ave., 262-8816. 9 am-9 pm daily.

It feels like the pinnacle of deviance to say so, but Iâ€™m
going to anyway: When you go to Pho Oregon, donâ€™t order the pho. Thereâ€™s
nothing wrong with the beef noodle soup, which comes with all the usual
bits of heifer in an invigorating broth; itâ€™s just that there are so
many other soups to try. I suggest the hu tieu my tho ($7.75), a
pork-based broth with shrimp and slices of pork, liver and fish ball
floating over a mass of clear noodles so rubbery that they canâ€™t really
be chewed. That sounds unappealing, but the sensation of slurping
several feet of noodles right down to oneâ€™s belly is surprisingly
gratifying; also, the soup contains enough protein to meet the RDI for a
grown man for a week. As an appetizer, try the Oregon nem cuon
($6.25), a tight rice-paper package containing sweet grilled pork,
lettuce, green onion and a whole spring roll. Dip it in the funky, sour
chile paste stashed at each table for a bewildering explosion of
contrasting texture and flavor. BEN WATERHOUSE.

Letâ€™s be perfectly clear on one thing:
There will be a line for a Pine State Biscuits establishment. If you
avoid peak weekend brunch hours, however, the Alberta Street outpost
grants you the best chance to avoid a long wait, since it boasts a
larger space with more seats and evening and late-night hours. Even if
you cannot avoid the biscuitless purgatory of a long wait, the moment
you stuff a fried chicken-, bacon-, egg-, cheese- and gravy-laden Reggie
Deluxe ($8) sandwich in your maw, all will be forgiven. Well, maybe not
all, but thatâ€™s why you order a side of tender collard greens ($2.50).
Wash it down with a mug of Stumptown ($2) and revel in the fact that you
wonâ€™t have to bother with figuring out what to do for lunch. BRIAN PANGANIBAN.

Deep-fried philanthropy! Poâ€™Shines diverts most of its
profits into training and counseling for young adults, and everyone from
the chef to your server is volunteering his or her time to the cause.
Which would, as far as your palate is concerned, amount to a hill of red
beans and rice if this altruistic enterprise wasnâ€™t also serving some
of Portlandâ€™s best soul food. The barbecue rib platter ($15.95), a
four-napkin meal for two, is a peerless showcase, and the three
crackling chicken wings and pound of juicy pork ribs are only the
beginning. You get sweet hush puppies as well as two sides; be sure to
request the greens ($3.50 on their own), which are jazzed up with smoked
turkey to become an essential centerpiece for this fine platter. This
is all good and well, but a doubt still lingers: What in Godâ€™s name is
that giant gumball machine doing in the dining room, and can someone
politely ask it to leave? CHRIS STAMM.

When vegan institution Blossoming Lotus
vacated Yoga Pearl for a slightly more granola part of town last year
(see page 11), Prasad stepped in to fill the void. Itâ€™s pretty much
stayed business-as-usual: skinny chicks with neat ponytails mindfully
munching on virtuous bowls of plant-based protein and complex
carbohydrates. Prices are about on par with the nearby Whole Foods, but
the food is infinitely better. The Soul Salad ($8) is satisfying, packed
with avocado, slow-roasted tomatoes, black beans and well-seasoned
tempeh. Bowls are equally formidable, layering a variety of fresh and
cooked green things, stews and sauces on a base of nutty Bhutanese red
rice or quinoa. The chili ($8) is insipid, but the African peanut ($9)
is a winner, smothered in a warm, gooey, peanut butter stew with a zip
of lime juice. The deli case also offers the areaâ€™s freshest grab-and-go
options, holding granola parfait cups ($6) for breakfast and hefty raw
and tortilla wraps ($7.50-$9) for lunch. RUTH BROWN.

Puerto Marquez

1721 SE 122nd Ave., 253-6842. 11 am-11 pm daily.

Like the inside of a piĂ±ata, Puerto Marquez jabs at the
senses with vivid blasts of color and cheerful pop-mariachi music (with
videos!). As fun as it is, the atmosphere of the place barely hints at
the multisensory pleasures that will soon grace your plate. The
restaurantâ€”sadly remote in an almost-Gresham strip mallâ€”specializes in
seafood; if you opt for the more common Mexican standards, beef
chimichangas and whatnot, you may be underwhelmed. But go for something
coastal, like the Puerto Acapulco, for example, and youâ€™ll feast
(possibly for days) on shrimp, chicken, cheese, beans, rice and
avocados, served with tortillas. Seafood empanadas donâ€™t look
particularly impressive, but the crust is crisp and delicate and the
shrimp inside perfectly tender. The ceviche ($8-$14)
could easily be a meal all by itself. There are several varietiesâ€”the
light and citrusy whitefish version is hard not to inhale. Between the
ceviche and the free chips with beans and salsa that come as appetizers,
you might happily spoil your appetite. But if you can pull it off, try a
made-to-share house special seafood platter, with shrimp, oysters,
halibut, mussels, veggies and rice ($59.95). Margaritas, like everything
else here, are enormous and tasty. BECKY OHLSEN.

Pupuseria El Buen Gusto

7732 SE 82nd Ave., 477-4402. 10 am-9 pm daily.

The pupusa is El Salvadorâ€™s answer to
grilled cheese. A starchy outer layerâ€”in this case, thick corn
tortillasâ€”surrounds a creamy, gooey mess of cheese. But donâ€™t stop at queso. Pupuseria El Buen Gusto offers a vast slate of fillings, including pork so soft it almost melts, and loroco,
an edible flower reminiscent of broccoli. This immaculate,
pumpkin-walled joint features plastic tablecloth covers and a menu
hand-scrawled on neon poster board, but donâ€™t underestimate the food. In
addition to pupusas ($3-$4), thereâ€™s a selection of enchiladas, tacos
and tamales ($2.50-$7.75). The flaky corn tamal has a welcome sweetness.
If you really wanna go for it (you did haul out to 82nd, after all),
get some atole de elote ($2.50), a sweet drink made from maize
meal and milk, to complement your hearty pupusa. Itâ€™s warm and rich and
thick, almost custardlike, and spiced with a liberal dose of cinnamon.
Eat it with a spoon. REBECCA JACOBSON.

It is very odd, this relatively swank Vietnamese
restaurant around the corner from Food4Less, all bamboo plywood, faux
temple doors and big orange lamps like bioluminescent jellyfish. It
seats 50, but is often empty. The menu has fancy
pretensions (quail in tamarind, $10.50), but the tea came lukewarm.
Still, that quail was quite good, with three half birds marinated in
palm sugar and tamarind and fried brown. There is great joy to be found
in picking tiny bones out of oneâ€™s teeth. Also excellent is the catfish
clay pot ($10.50), a pound or so of fried and poached fish in a sweet,
tangy sauce. It looks small, but it will easily make two meals. A
turmeric noodle soup ($7.95) with pork ball and shrimp was also good,
but could have benefitted from more broth and fewer noodles. BEN WATERHOUSE.

â€śWe need to work on betterâ€”whatâ€™s the word?â€”efficiency,â€ť
complained a Red Coach server to the line cook during a recent Monday
lunch rush. Thatâ€™s probably a fair criticism to levy against a diner
that requires two stories to make its hamburgersâ€”patties are formed in
the ground-level kitchen, then carried upstairs to the second-floor
grillâ€”but the menu is laudably succinct. If youâ€™re eating here, youâ€™re
getting the Karlâ€™s Special (cheeseburger, fries, soda: $9.25) or some
variation thereof (maybe with the well-battered onion rings). The
burgers wonâ€™t impress a gourmand, but theyâ€™re exactly what youâ€™re always
being told to drive 10 miles off the highway exit in Kansas to find, by
the people who write about this sort of thing for a living. The people
who actually eat Red Coachâ€™s burgers are not the people who write about
this sort of thing for a living; they are bank clerks and accountants
who seem very content to feast on such reliable cheeseburgers. AARON MESH.

The specials menu at Red Onion bears a
cautionary note: â€śWe regret we are unable to make any changes or return
of your dish after serving.â€ť Ostensibly, the warning is for white-bread
customers who might be shocked by some of chef Aut â€śDangâ€ť Boonyakamolâ€™s
more daring Northern Thai specialties. But for those of us prepared to
push our palates to the limit, the warning might also serve as the
kitchenâ€™s insurance against disappointment with the menuâ€™s more mediocre
offerings. Red Onion was a runner-up for WWâ€™s Restaurant of the Year in 2009, and some dishes unfailingly delight and impress. The spicy sai oua
(Chiang Mai sausage) is a lemongrass-enhanced masterpiece, and
standards like the monstrous bowls of tom yum soup are the best in town.
But those who stick with insidersâ€™ advice and order from the rotating
specials menu could also come up short. The neau yang mamprik jaiw
(marinated steak) underperforms in the flavor department, and the house
special seafood curry, while highly competent, provides no surprises.
Take into account the lackluster service, and it becomes clear that at
least part of Red Onionâ€™s stellar reputation is due to a dearth of
high-quality Thai places in town. But the highlights still keep us
hungry for more. JAMES PITKIN.

Johns Landingâ€™s unpromising melange of
â€™70s and â€™80s office frontage might seem an unlikely spot for an
old-school rib jointâ€”Reoâ€™s previous location was in similarly unlikely
Alohaâ€”and the new place still sports an Aztec painting from one of the
many failed Mexican joints in the same spot. Still, this is what makes
it ripe for a takeover; Reoâ€™s has started with its own strip-mall
parking lot, which now houses no fewer than three smokers and a
quarter-cord of firewood. Starting at 5 am each morning, a thick, meaty
haze drifts across Macadam Avenue to the river. The service was
genuinely friendly and preternaturally swift, but the placeâ€™s real heart
is in Reoâ€™s barbecue sauce: a sweet, mid-Southern molasses honey rarely
seen in Portland (you can get the insanely extra-hot stuff by request).
The meat is slow-cooked, moist and tenderâ€”the chicken was almost too
tender, if thatâ€™s possible, teetering over from moist into wet, but the
pork and beef were succulent as hell and pretty much faultless. Fair
warning: The labor-intensive slow cooking doesnâ€™t come cheapâ€”a rack of
baby-backs snuggles against $30â€”but the hefty $20 five-meat sampler
could stuff two. On $15 a person, including sweet tea, I left happy,
more than sated and in need of a toothpick, with a spot of barbecue
sauce still in my beard. This is as it should be. MATTHEW KORFHAGE.

Lisa Herlinger, creator of the Ruby Jewel ice-cream sandwich, offers way more flavors at this spumoni-toned shop
than youâ€™ll find between the cookies at farmers markets and premium
grocers across the city. Among them are vanilla, fresh mint flake,
espresso, double chocolate, caramel with salted chocolate and honey
lavender (already renowned in sandwich form). And there is rocky road
(excellent, with housemade marshmallows), banana cream pie (with cookie
chunks and swirls of marshmallow cream), strawberry, peanut butter dream
and dairy-free raspberry ice and cherry-almond ice. A specials board
offers even more flavors. Pints are available to go for $6, and the shop
offers sundaes with housemade toppings. The best of these is the
Rosemary Langer ($6), which pairs rosemary-salted pecans with dulce de
leche syrup and vanilla ice cream. Itâ€™s greatâ€”a savory sundae for
adults. You can make your own ice-cream sandwich with Ruby Jewelâ€™s
cookies for $4. BEN WATERHOUSE.

Way out in Aloha, off a nondescript road and sharing a
building with Martindaleâ€™s Home Theater, is a barely marked hole in the
wall serving authentic Salvadoran cuisine. Any restaurant that hard to
find has to be good, and Sabor SalvadoreĂ±o lives up to its obscurity. As
with all Central American eateries, any evaluation must start with the
pupusas ($2), which for the uninitiated are essentially quesadillas
stuffed with beans, cheese or meat. Freshly made, theirs are among the
best in the city. Moving down the menu, try the rellenos de pacaya, an edible flower battered in egg and topped with tomato salsa, or the pan relleno de pollo
($4), a knee-buckling chicken stew sandwich that literally overflows
out of the bun. Yes, they also serve hamburgers for conservative
gringos, but seriously, who would want a plain old burger after putting
in all the effort of actually finding the damn place? MATT SINGER.

Sandwich Island

827 SW 2nd Ave., 330-5002. 10 am-2 pm Monday-Friday.

Sandwich Island would make a great cart,
but (for better or for worse) itâ€™s currently tucked away in a bustling
downtown food court. Lord knows its pulled-pork sandwiches would be just
as loved by late-night revelers as they are by midday World Trade
Center suits. Moist, smoky kalua porkâ€”a traditional Hawaiian method of
seriously slow roastingâ€”packed in a bun, nary a sauce or topping
required. Get the Little Piggy ($4.25) with a heapingâ€”and freeâ€”side of
potato salad, or supersize to the Hog Daddy, with â€śeven more kalua porkâ€ť
($6.25). For something more entree than handheld, the Mokihana
pulled-pork rice bowl keeps it as simple and savory as the sandwiches
(pulled pork over steaming white rice, topped with coleslaw: $6.25). CAITLIN MCCARTHY.

Remember when you were in grade school
and you had a shelf to display all the awards you won playing soccer and
baseball? Slabtown Ribs is decorated like that, with nearly every inch
of the space adorned with a prize-winning ribbon from a barbecue
competition. But unlike you, the restaurant actually deserves all the
merits. Slabtownâ€™s barbecue, especially the meaty, fall-off-the-bone
pork spareribs ($13 for a half-rack and one side), are among the finest
in the Northwest. And while itâ€™s hard to pass on anything with a bone in
it, the giant pulled-pork sandwich ($7.50 with one side) is one of the
best lunch deals youâ€™ll find in town. Just donâ€™t order the
rancid-tasting, sewageâ€‘y collard greens, or youâ€™ll have a funny taste in
your mouth the rest of the afternoon. MICHAEL MANNHEIMER.

This make-your-own pancake joint is kid central, from the
squeeze bottles filled with buttermilk, peanut butter and even
gluten-free batter to the big drawer of toys near the front door (where
you will wait for a table for at least a half-hour on the weekends).
Luckily, the airy, bright-orange accented space caters to big kids too,
with a long first come first served bar stocked with strong Bloody Marys
($7, or $20 for a pitcher) and greyhounds ($6) and a globe-spanning
menu of morning eats that have nothing to do with maple syrup, from
congee ($8) and Benedicts to a good, spicy chicken tinga with oozy eggs
($8.50). Everybody wins, especially families. The staff is efficient and
cheery, unperturbed by the wide, hot griddles set in the middle of each
table or your choice to make all your pancakes in the shape of cock â€™nâ€™
balls or amoebas ($6 per batter bottle, plus $1-$2 per topping from
fruit to bacon, goat cheese and chocolate chips). Theyâ€™ll even just make
the pancakes for you if youâ€™re lazy ($2 for a cake as big as your
head). Otherwise, grab a spatula and get to work, you yeasty Picasso. KELLY CLARKE.

The dining room of Soi 9 Thai Eatery is designed to blend
into the design of West Burnside condo tower the Civic: bare, modernist
boredom. Walking inside, however, is like tuning in to a Bangkok radio
stationâ€”meals are soundtracked with Thai pop music, which sounds like a
countrified J-pop with a splash of Disney ballads. The cooking likewise
strikes a happy balance between the familiar and the fantastical. The
name Soi 9 is a play on the Thai word for â€śstreet,â€ť and the menu is chef
Mon Gypmantasiriâ€™s formalizing of Southeast Asian cart food. Her
specialties are dishes youâ€™ve almost had before; trying them is like
sleeping with an old loverâ€™s hotter twin. Take the guaey teaw esan
($9.50), or Eastern Province Noodle, which uses the same thin, flat
rice noodles as pad Thai, but stir-fries them in black soy sauce and
salted bean sauce. The panang nua curry ($12.50) is a massive
plate of tenderloin thatâ€™s been simmered for an hour in its spicy bath,
with large string beans and a drizzle of coconut cream. Itâ€™s decadently
sweet and powerfully spicy, like candy that makes you cry. And the guaey teaw ruar
($9.50)â€”or Boat Noodle Soupâ€”floats meatballs, sliced beef and
watercress in a broth strongly seasoned with cinnamon. I immediately
thought of it as Christmas pho. AARON MESH.

Spring Restaurant in Pal-do Oriental Food Market is a
bitch to find. Thereâ€™s a barely noticeable sign and nothing pointing you
to the meat counter at the back of the store, where you head up the
largely hidden stairs to the restaurant. Your reward, on arrival, is
delicious, market-fresh Korean food. The tasty japchae (sesame-oil-fried noodles with strips of marinated beef and veggies, $9.95) feeds two with complimentary banchan,
which is small plates of kimchi, pickled daikon and more. Spring
Restaurant is decorated with paper-on-plywood photos of menu items,
staffed by people who speak little English and full of hearty fare like
the gamjatang ($8.95), a spicy pork and potato stew thatâ€™s
simmering when served. Thereâ€™s no beer or wine, so donâ€™t wonder why the
woman smiled as an answer to your request and never brought you
anything. LIZ CRAIN.

Nobody really knows what Cheez Whiz is. The bizarre,
bright-orange slop tastes nothing like real cheese and appears to have
been rendered from alien ooze from another galaxy. But one thing is
certain: a Philly cheesesteak simply isnâ€™t the real deal without it.
Lucky for Portland, Steakadelphia is as real as the Spirit of â€™76. Whiz
aside, the unassuming Steakadelphia gets the traditional, thin-sliced
sandwich right, from the perfect integration of translucent onions to
the small lake of grease that pools underneath sandwiches like the Cheez
Whiz Philly ($6-$10.50), making it necessary to chomp down the whole
concoction before the hoagie bun disintegrates. Burgers are also great,
and the Whiz-averse have the choice of other cheeses on their
sandwiches. Just be sure to leave room for a terrific strawberry shake
($3.25), made with real ice cream for anyone who needs an actual dairy
product to counteract the Whizâ€™s unforeseen genetic consequences. AP KRYZA.

Although its slogan, â€śYou Eat Here Because We Let You,â€ť
comes across as oddly aggressive (it sounds like a phrase thatâ€™d be
emblazoned on a sign in a prison mess hall), Stepping Stone Cafe is the
epitome of a neighborhood greasy spoon, with emphasis on the grease.
Itâ€™s the kind of place that has kept Americans fat and happy for
decades, serving up aorta-abusing burgers ($6.50-$8.50), meatloaf
($10.50) and hash browns covered in melted cheese and bacon ($7.75). All
of it makes for a fabulous tribute to Western gluttony, but nothing
compares to the â€śman-cakes,â€ť the absurdly massive 13-inch pancakes that
once challenged Adam Richman, Man vs. Foodâ€™s human garbage
disposal. If you can still form sentences after consuming the full stack
($8.50), make sure to pay homage to the restaurantâ€™s motto and thank
your server for letting you eat your way toward an earlier grave at his
establishment. MATT SINGER.

Nestled in the nexus of quirk that is Clinton Streetâ€”its
neighbors include Scandinavian cafe Broder, the velvet painting-adorned
dive bar Dots and, of course, the Clinton Street Theater, famous for its
weekly screenings of The Rocky Horror Picture Showâ€”Sub Rosa
seems downright quaint, with its small dining area and classy decor. It
keeps things simple, offering artisan pizzas and pastas with unfussy
accoutrements. About as weird as the place gets is the Northwest by SE
pizza ($18), which comes with caramelized onions and pears as toppings.
Otherwise, itâ€™s just high-quality Italian served with genuine smiles.
Its tagline is â€śa friendly neighborhood joint,â€ť and thatâ€™s an apt
description. MATT SINGER.

Steeped in French decor, with accordion practically
wheezing from the woodwork, Suzette is a crĂŞpe-serving
food-cart/restaurant hybrid. Order from the camper-turned-kitchen out
back and then follow the gravel path back inside. Diners have a choice
between couch and table seating, where they will be delivered from the
trailer-kitchen out back buckwheat flour crĂŞpes folded into large,
plate-filling triangles. As far as savory crĂŞpes are concerned, the
marsala-soaked fig ($7) is the most interesting option, with a strong
taste of garlic and the enjoyable crunch of fig seeds. Best of all are
the sweet crĂŞpes: The Normandie (filled with lemon butter) and Amandine
(filled with marzipan) come drizzled with chocolate and topped with
poached pears and ice cream (both $8). RACHAEL DEWITT.

Letâ€™s be honestâ€”the Indian lunch buffet is all about
quantity over quality. Itâ€™s the challenge of testing how much chicken
tikka you can guzzle before your brain catches up to your stomach or
your innards drown in ghee. But this downtown hole-in-the-wall offers a
surprisingly tasty way to burst your belly. Hidden inside Tandoorâ€™s
unassuming buffet bain-marie, youâ€™ll find rich and creamy sauces, light
and crunchy pakoras, soft paneer and warm, crispy naan. Itâ€™s not exactly
the pinnacle of Punjabi cuisine, but itâ€™s fresh, full of spice and
flavor and, most importantly, for $10, you can shove as much of it in
your gob as is humanly possible, then chase it with free chai. Just save
a bit of room for the rice kheer; itâ€™s a little on the watery side, but
so thick with flavors of saffron, cardamom and other spices Iâ€™m sure I
canâ€™t spell, itâ€™s worth forgoing that third serving of biryani to
sample. RUTH BROWN.

For a neighborhood in proximity to a college, Woodstock
falls short in the restaurant department. Reedies looking to do better
than Delta Cafe have to hoof it all the way up to Southeast 48th Avenue
to Taniâ€™s, where the sushi is cheap and the air is filled with the smell
of frying gyoza. Truth be told, Taniâ€™s is no great shakes when it comes
to sushi. The fish is good, but come on top of too much rice; maybe
stick to sashimi or anything with eel over the too-large rolls. Where
the place excels is in the hot portion of the menu: The grilled salmon
cheek ($9), marinated in miso, is a fatty, savory treat; those gyoza
($4.50) are juicy and scaldingly hot; tempura is crisp and not too oily;
and the tonkatsu (deep-fried pork cutlet, $8.50) is exactly like what
youâ€™d get at a Tokyo lunch counter, all crispy salty chew. Donâ€™t skip
the very good cucumber salad ($3.50). BEN WATERHOUSE.

One may be accustomed to seeing buildings built around
trees or hillsides, but a full-size bus? A retrofitted espresso and ice
cream truck (â€śGargoyleâ€™s Denâ€ť still emblazoned on the side) houses La
Estacionâ€™s kitchen, protruding comically through a wall of its building.
Speaking of landmarks, this Cully neighborhood diamond in the rough
shares its parking lot with the strip club the Sugar Shackâ€”but thatâ€™s
where any dubiousness begins and ends. The fresh smell of corn tortillas
hits you upon entry: Tacos are cheap and abundant ($1), with enough
cilantro and pickled onion to make you divorce Tex-Mex forever. If light
and varied isnâ€™t your style, try the Taqueriaâ€™s giant, perfectly
toasted tortas ($4), easily enough to share. The real treasures,
however, are the panuchos ($1.50 with avocado), a Yucatecan dish
that fills a fried tortilla with bean paste and tops it with lettuce,
chicken, onion, tomato, avocado and chiles. CAITLIN MCCARTHY.

Want to get a measure of a Lebanese restaurant? Order its
veggie mezza ($12). The traditional assortment of hummus, baba ghanouj,
falafel, grape leaves and tabbouleh is as good a metric as any in
determining a kitchenâ€™s acumen. TarBoushâ€™s accompanying pita bread,
which comes out of the kitchen hot and appropriately puffed, ably serves
as a vessel for the spreads, but lacks the slight yeasty tang of the
best examples of this staple. The tabbouleh is great with everythingâ€”an
unusually high parsley-to-bulgur ratio gives the salad a bright,
astringent quality with a subtle nuttiness. Nice and crispy, the falafel
is at its best when you assemble an ad-hoc sandwich with the other
mezza accompaniments. Over on the hot side of the menu, The grilled
chicken ($14) is tender and succulent, with a lovely garlicky finish,
and the kafta kebab ($14) is easily one of the best versions in town,
substantial and filling while still moist BRIAN PANGANIBAN.

This is Italy in a shoebox, people. Born as a takeout pit
stop, Taste Uniqueâ€™s tiny Division Street storefront is dominated by a
giant chalkboard full of daily offerings of housemade soups and sauces
and fresh pasta and a pair of big fridges packed with family-sized
takeout freezer trays of meat cannelloni and baked risotto pie (around
$15-$20 a tray). Smart eaters claim a bar stool or one of the handful of
tables for truly wonderful lunch specials: Big, peppery
balsamic-dressed salads ($6); super-eggy, Parmesan-salty,
put-you-in-a-coma-rich spaghetti carbonara (scarf it down fast and donâ€™t
let it congeal on the plate); or a whole crusty corner of tart tomato
and meat lasagna (both $9). Theyâ€™ll serve you the best focaccia in town
while you wait, hot and salty, straight from the oven. All the while,
the musical sound of Italian shop talk flows out from the kitchen, where
Perugia-born chef Stefania Toscano lovingly prepares everything from
her takeout basics to a special dinner menu of 18th-century dishes
culled from a rare cookbook called Il Cuoco Maceratese. Plus,
every other Friday, Taste Unique holds its â€śAperitivo Italianoâ€ťâ€”thatâ€™s
$18 for a glass of wine and all-you-can-eat appetizers. KELLY CLARKE.

â€śHealthy Thai Cuisine,â€ť the menu claims,
with â€śhealthy cuisineâ€ť apparently being defined against food that can
literally break into your house and strangle you while you sleep. The
oil slicks here might not shimmer with that familiar noodle-shack
brilliance, but letâ€™s not fool ourselves into thinking that the pad Thai
and pad see ew (both $8.95-$9.95, depending on your meat preference)
are anything more than carefully arranged heaps of sweetened
carbohydrate comforts. The sad fact of the matter is that nothing
healthy can be craved with such violence on a chilly night. The tom yum
soup ($8.95-$9.95) might actually be salutary to some degree, if you buy
into food as a cold cure. The hot-and-sour broth with fresh chiles and
lime juice cuts through stuffiness like a hot blade through fog, and
unlike much of Thai Noonâ€™s stir-fried combinations, it does not taste
like dessert. CHRIS STAMM.

Tuk Tuk, named for the three-wheeled rickshaws of
Thailand, serves up colossal portions of Thai-American dishes at
recession-friendly prices. Start out with a Thai iced tea or coffee ($2)
and â€śRock and Rolls,â€ť refreshing lemongrass spring rolls with a hearty
peanut sauce ($5). Then warm up with the tom kha hot-and-sour soup,
served in a traditional doughnut-shaped firepot; the light vegetarian
pad Thai with tofu; or the comforting gang massaman curry with chicken
($9.50 each). If youâ€™re feeling adventurous, try the pla dook pad pedâ€”fried
catfish and eggplant with roasted-chile sauce ($11.50). Bring your
college buddies or your gramps; Tuk Tukâ€™s bright walls, modern art and
eclectic decor are warm and welcoming for all. Remember to make room in
your fridge for leftovers. STACY BROWNHILL.

Dwayne Beliakoffâ€™s serially delayed â€śfast slow foodâ€ť
restaurant has finally opened in a modernist glass box in Director Park
on the South Park Blocks, just adjacent to a strangely gonadal fountain
devoted to the spirit of teaching. Despite Violettaâ€™s ĂĽber-sleek
exterior, its insides are a clean, inviting Westy-lefty version of an
East Coast urban burger-and-dog microshop, with terrifically specific
recycling instructions decorating the waste bins. The signature Angus
beef Violetta Burger ($6) is accordingly a sloppy, tasty mess to rival
anything in South Philly or the old Coney Islandâ€”sealed shut by its own
juice and fat in recycled cardboard and paperâ€”with appealingly goopy
special sauce, butter lettuce and something called â€ś10-hourâ€ť tomatoes.
Applewood bacon and cheese can be added, at minor expense, for even
greater decadence. Violetta is a welcome lunch-dinner presence in a
neighborhood that suffers from an appalling absence of affordable
sit-down options. MATTHEW KORFHAGE.

Tucked behind (and partially within)
Bread and Ink Cafe, Waffle Window is so much more than a
griddlecake-dispensing fenestration. The LiĂ¨ge-style waffles themselves
arenâ€™t huge, but are cakey and remarkably filling for their diminutive
stature. And hey, itâ€™s whatâ€™s on top that matters. Of course thereâ€™s all
the sweet stuffâ€”fruit, whipped cream, and Nutella are in no short
supply here. Case in point: the banana/caramel/granola Banana Rumba
($4). But the savory selections are far more intriguing. The Three Bâ€™s
waffle ($4.50) with Brie, bacon and basil sounds amazing enough as it
is, but Waffle Windowâ€™s inspired addition is peach jam, risking
overwhelming sweetness yet somehow playing perfectly nicely with the
basil and the peppery bacon. The Farm Fusion ($4) is a healthier choice,
piled high with veggies and a dollop of lemon/thyme-marinated chevre,
lending a touch of sweetness. The best part? Waffles can be eaten inside
or out, making a detour to the Window worthwhile any time of year. CRAIG BEEBE.

Thereâ€™s a reason Chicago has a high rate of obesity: The
hot dogs are addictive. Wayneâ€™s Red Hots offers the most authentic
Chicago dogs this side of Wrigley, and the small MLK eateryâ€”a haven for
Cubs and Sox fansâ€”even brings Vienna Beef, to the table. Purists will
melt at the sight of the Chicago Red Hot ($5 with fries), â€śdragged
through the gardenâ€ť with a pickle spear, neon-green relish, peppers,
tomato slices and celery salt slopped onto a poppyseed bun. The more
adventurous are advised to pop a Lipitor before diving into the Ditka
($8), a half-pound torpedo swimming in enough chili and cheese to make
anyone go up a bra size. The only complaint here is Wayneâ€™s early
closing time. Imagine the splendor of a late-night heart attack!
Regardless, expect to tip the scales after lunch. AP KRYZA.

Whiskey Soda Lounge opened in December
2009 as a place to grab a drink during the inevitable 45-minute wait at
Pok Pok, but it quickly became that little brother that outshines its
older siblings. Less formal, less busy, and less scene-y, Whiskey Soda
Lounge serves authentic Thai food that is perfect for nibbling at the
bar. The Ikeâ€™s Vietnamese Fish Sauce Wings ($12 for an order of five
wings) are famous, and for a reason: They balance just the right amount
of sweetness with a serious kick. For my money the miang kham
($7)â€”dried shrimp, ginger, peanuts, lime, shallot, coconut and chiles
atop a betel leafâ€”is even better, the perfect appetizer for a killer
Sazerac ($8) or the best whiskey sour ($8) in town. Prepare to be blown
away. MICHAEL MANNHEIMER.

Formerly a long-vacant dry-cleaners, this high-ceilinged
and light-filled room feels less like a full-blown bakery than it does a
homey coffeehouse where one of the owners (Gretchen Glatte) just
happens to be churning out cookies, pies and scones in the exposed
kitchen. The relatively limited assortment of goods has included
whole-wheat banana or pumpkin muffins ($2.50) and orange-currant and
cheddar green-onion scones ($2.50), and will typically include one
variety of seasonal pie, available by the slice ($3.50). A
chocolate-chip cookie ($1.50) scored high with a brown sugary-sweetness
surrounding both bittersweet and intense, unsweetened chocolate. Trust
me, this totally works. JOANNA MILLER.

Shaped like oversized M&Ms, the pita at Ya Hala comes
out of the kitchen in steamy, soft heaps, ready to be dipped in your
choice of creamy vegetable or bean paste. Ya Hala offers all the
Lebanese staplesâ€”the tabbouleh($4.95) is refreshing, the lentil soup
($3.95) is comforting and the lamb kebab is tender and rich ($13.95). If
youâ€™d like a more surprising experience, try the shanklish
($4.95). These baby eggplants, poached, stuffed with walnuts, garlic and
chile peppers and cured in olive oil, are like cool, savory vegetable
grenades. Though Ya Hala is tucked away in Montavilla, itâ€™s often
crowded, especially during weekend lunches. When youâ€™re done with your
meal, and you want to bring the Mediterranean heat into your home,
thereâ€™s a Middle Eastern food-imports store next door that can provide
needed supplies. RACHAEL DEWITT.

Yokoâ€™s

2878 SE Gladstone St., 736-9228. 5-9:30 pm daily.

Your out-of-town guests wonâ€™t give you
extra points for scenery if you take them to Yokoâ€™s, which is nestled
among nondescript bungalows in the Creston-Kenilworth neighborhood. But
forget scenery. Yokoâ€™s is all about the sushi, which comes in
traditional nigiri form as well as more imaginative modes. One of Yokoâ€™s
most creative and delicious offerings is called Takaâ€™s Tuna ($7.50 for
two pieces). The dish looks intimidating; itâ€™s basically a flattened,
deep-fried rice ball with spicy tuna, sliced avocado and green onion
piled high on top. But eat it in small bites like an overflowing taco
and you wonâ€™t regret it. Another creative option: The Walla Walla roll,
which includesâ€”what else?â€”onion ($7). Itâ€™s best to prepare for the
possibility of a long wait, and an even longer one if youâ€™re in a group
of more than four. Just sign your name to the waiting list. Then hit C
Bar next door for a beer or cocktail. One final bit of advice: Save room
for tempura ice cream, which is wrapped in pound cake before itâ€™s
deep-fried. BETH SLOVIC.

Brunch can be quite the ordeal in
Portland. Securing a spot in a diner on a weekend morning might
necessitate the occasional passive-aggressive jab of the elbow. For that
reason, itâ€™s good to know your options, and Zellâ€™s should definitely
rank among them. Not particularly trendy, Zellâ€™s is well lit and doesnâ€™t
reek too much of diner shtick. The weekly changing chalkboard specials a
bit more exciting than the staples. The baked salmon Benedict ($10.25)
is one of Zellâ€™s classics, with well-poached eggs, a generous helping of
salmon and thick hollandaise. Best of all are the complimentary scones
to abate your crippling midmorning hunger. RACHAEL DEWITT.